


Listen

by CatBooks (CatsAndBooks)



Category: Aldnoah.Zero (Anime)
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, M/M, Season 1 and season 2, Slow Burn, post ep 7
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-25
Updated: 2017-04-09
Packaged: 2018-06-04 12:17:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 157,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6657433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatsAndBooks/pseuds/CatBooks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inaho doesn't shoot Slaine down, and brings him on board instead. They will have to learn to trust each other, because now they are fighting together on the same side of the war.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Princess Asseylum, I’ve found you at last!”

Inaho hears these words over the communication channel and he immediately starts processing why this martian would know the princess was alive. His words indicated that he knew she was alive, and was looking for her, for a while. So he didn’t just surmise it from the fact that the Deucalion’s aldnoah drive was functioning.

The most likely option is that he was part of the assassination attempt, and is trying to finish the job. Inaho wants to confirm this. 

“Your princess was dead. And in spite of that… why are you looking for her? You knew that the princess was alive. So why?”

“What do you mean?”

The confusion is evident in his voice, so Inaho feels there might be something more that he is missing. He is also very curious as to why the martian would help eliminate one of his own. 

“Answer me.”

“Take me to her Highness.”

“Answer my question first.”

“Wait… are you intending to exploit her to your own ends?”

“If she’s exploited, do you have a problem with that?”

Inaho wants to judge the reaction. He senses the hostility towards him rising. 

“Are you…my enemy?”

Somehow, Inaho doesn’t think so. 

“I do not know if we are enemies. You just assisted me against a martian, but you somehow know the princess is alive, when she is supposed to be dead. You seemed to be concerned for her safety, but you could just be a good liar and are planning on finishing the assassination attempt.”

“What!? I would never be part of the assassination on her highness!”

Inaho thinks that the safest path may be to shoot down the aircraft. The tension is almost palpable as Inaho considers. There are five solid reasons he should shoot down Bat right now. His curiosity towards the pilot outweighs these though. And Inaho figures he can always dispose of him later if he becomes a problem. 

“You can come on board, but you must surrender all weapons and be restrained first.”

Slaine is hesitant to put himself in terran hands, but his need to see Princess Asseylum, and to make sure she isn’t being used, overrides his discomfort. Her well-being will always come before his safety.

“…Fine.”

Inaho contacts the new battleship, and explains the situation. Understandably everyone is shocked by Inaho’s suggestion. His sister more so, going off about how ‘that’s a martian, and martians are the enemy’. 

When Inaho explains the logic behind it - they can’t let him go or he could leak information to the enemy, they shouldn’t kill him when he just assisted them and don’t know his motives, which leaves only the option of taking him captive until they discern his true motives – Captain Magbaredge reluctantly agrees that it seems like the best course of action. 

They allow Inaho and Slaine to dock in the battleship.

-

Slaine gets out of his sky carrier with surveillance from the crew on the battleship. When he sees the boy who gets out of the orange Kataphakt, he is surprised to find that Orange is very young, probably about his own age. 

As he observes Orange’s interaction with the crew he surmises that Orange must not be very friendly with them. His expression never changes. Not even when he turns to look at Slaine. He simply stares for a few seconds, then looks away to talk to the crew about his kataphakt. He doesn’t make any move to formally introduce himself, so Slaine turns his attention to the crew around him.

-

Once Slaine is searched and cuffed, he and Orange are taken to what he assumes is the captain’s office. When he enters, he immediately sees that Princess Asseylum is there, and he is so overcome with relief that he disregards the others in the room. 

“Your highness!” he gasps “Are you alright?! Are you being used?!”

In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have asked such a question in front of the commanding officer. But to Slaine’s relief, Princess Asseylum smiles and shakes her head. 

“I am helping the terrans of my own will so that together we can end his war and make peace with the terrans.”

It seems like she wants to continue on that speech of peace, but the captain clears her throat, and Slaine finally looks at the other people in the room.

There are two woman behind the desk. The one on the right seems to be in charge, so the other one must be her second in command. There’s another girl with short red hair, scowling at the floor. 

He sees Eddelrittuo glaring at him, like usual. This puts his mind at rest. If Slaine is the biggest offence to Eddelrittuo right now, the princess must really be safe for now. 

Finally he glances at the boy he still only knows as Orange. He is looking at the captain with that same blank look on his face.

The boy begins to explain about the assassination attempt on the princess by the Mars Knights in an emotionless voice, his facial expression never changing.

_Is he a robot or something?!_

The captain finally accepts the story and proceeds to explain how the communication channels are blocked, so they can’t alert anyone that the princess is still alive. Instead, they will head to the United Earth HQ in Russia.

“Very well. Until we arrive, we will see to your safety, Highness” 

Slaine is relieved, and Princess Asseylum seems happy, replying with a polite thank you. The captain turns towards Orange.

“Now, Kaizuka Junior…” she begins but is interrupted.

“Inaho Kaizuka, maam.” 

So Orange’s real name is Inaho. 

The captain simply stares at him for a few seconds as if she's used to frequent interruptions from him, then turns to the red head. 

“And you…”

“Rayet Areash.”

At least now he knows almost everyone’s name in this room. 

“You two were aware of this, yet neglected to inform me”

“I am not a solider. I am not obligated to report to you”

Slaine is shocked by her blatant disregard for a superior officer, and tenses for a fight. But the captain turns to Oran- Inaho instead.

“And you, Junior?”

“I didn’t neglect to inform you. I deliberately didn’t”

Inaho’s face never changes. 

_Does everyone disrespect authority on this ship?!_

Princess Asseylum is quick to defend him, and Eddelrituo points out there might be someone working with the assassins on board. This makes Slaine tense up. He will need to keep a sharp eye on everyone on board and make sure the Princess is always safe.

“We can’t trust you martians, either.” 

Slaine decides he needs to watch Rayet too. He sensed real hatred in her voice as she talked. 

“All martians are the enemy,” she finished with tears in her eyes, and left, without being dismissed. 

The captain once again ignores this disrespect and continues on, turning her attention to him.

-

“Now, the issue of whether or not this other martian is to be trusted…” she begins, but Princess Asseylum chimes in happily. 

“On no! Slaine would never be a part of a war on Earth! He is my dear friend!”

So Bat’s real name is Slaine. Inaho doubts Slaine is as innocent as Asseylum makes him out to be. But he obviously values the princess’s well-being over anything else, so as long as he doesn’t believe they are using her, Inaho thinks that Slaine is safe, for now. 

The captain obviously comes to a similar conclusion, because she gives permission for Slaine to be uncuffed, promising that she will have some questions for him later. Inaho supposes that compared to discovering they had been harboring the martian princess, trusting a simple martian that the princess vouched for wouldn’t seem like a big deal. 

Inaho was still interested in how he knew she was alive, and where to find her, though. He doesn’t quite trust Bat yet. Bat was also a very good fighter, and Inaho is curious about him. 

It was for these reasons that when Captain Magbaredge says that Inaho is in charge of getting Bat set up in the ship, Inaho doesn’t attempt to get out of it (he found 8 arguments against it). He turns toward Slaine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is going to be my take on what should have happened. I will try to sick to the cannon elements.
> 
> This is also my first multi-chaptered fic, so I hope it goes well!
> 
> Sorry for any mistakes :)


	2. Chapter 2

“Inaho, you will assist…” The captain turns towards Slaine “Slaine?” Slaine nods hesitantly. 

“You will assist Slaine in finding a job assignment and sleeping quarters.” 

Inaho hesitates for a second, and Slaine is certain he is about to give a very logical argument against it. But then he simply nods, and turns to look at Slaine for a second. Then he starts walking out of the office without a word. 

Slaine is so, so confused. Not only did he leave without permission or even a goodbye to the captain, but he didn’t even say anything to Slaine before leaving!  
  
_Am I supposed to follow him?_

Slaine is very hesitant to leave the Princess here alone with people he didn’t fully trust, but Inaho is getting further away. He doesn’t want to disobey orders to go with Inaho, but the princess…

Luckily Princess Asseylum and Eddelrittuo start moving after Inaho.

“Come on, Slaine!” Princess Asseylum says happily, and Eddelrittuo just glares at him as they walk past.

He hurries to catch up to them and Inaho. He blanches when he hears Inaho call her Highness Seylum in such casual terms. And his mouth opens in argument when Princess Asseylum gives him permission. But Eddelrittuo beats him to it. That is at least one thing they agree on.

Eddelrittuo’s argument goes nowhere, and Slaine is about to intervene on her behalf when he hears a shout and footsteps running towards them. He tenses up and moves closed to the princess, prepared to protect her. 

No one else seems concerned when a blonde man with freckles stops in front of them.

“You knew that there were martians hiding among us?!” The boy seems pretty worked up, and Slaine tenses at his dislike of martians on board. 

“Yeah.” 

_He says it in the same tone!_

Slaine is starting to get annoyed with his emotionlessness. 

_Is he not even going to explain himself?_

He has more important things to worry about though when the princess steps in front of him to tell the boy that she is the martian princess. Slaine is ready for a fight.  
But to his surprise, the boy starts stammering and blushing, all anger gone from his voice as he tells her to do her best. He even salutes her, Slaine is glad at least someone is giving her some kind of respect. 

Two girls seemed to have appeared without him noticing during the exchange. In the future he needs to keep better vigilance. 

They start teasing the boy over his sudden change of heart for martians. He turns to Inaho to back him up at one point. Slaine is not even surprised anymore when Inaho doesn’t say anything, just stares back at him. 

He is startled when the girl with short black hair turns and addresses him.

“Hi I’m Inko, and this is Nina and Calm!” She points to the other girl and the boy in turn. “Are you the other martian Inaho brought aboard?”

“Uh, I’m Slaine, nice to meet you, and actually… Uh, I’m not a martian, I’m terran.” He debated telling the truth, but found no reason to hide it, and Princess Asseylum already knew and might think bad of him for lying to these people. 

“Oh! No wonder you helped us then!” They all begin talking excitedly about the battle, having a real princess on board, and what they were going to do for the rest of the day. Slaine doesn’t really hear them though, because he feels eyes on him. 

He turns and finds Inaho looking at him, giving away nothing with his face. Slaine looks back for a moment, before Inko bumps shoulders with Inaho happily and says “Right Inaho?”

Slaine could tell Inaho hadn’t been following the conversation either, but he turns to her and nods anyway. She smiles brightly at this.

Wait. Were these people his…friends? How does someone like him make friends, especially ones like these?

“Bye Slaine! It was nice to meet you! We’ll see you guys at dinner!” Inko yells as her and the others start to leave. Princess Asseylum chimes in happily. “I should go with them. I need to make sure the aldnoah drive is working right! And I should introduce myself to the rest of the crew.” 

Slaine is reluctant to let her go, but she has been here for a while with no problems, and these people seem nice enough…for now. Plus, Eddelrittuo will be with her, and she wouldn’t let her Highness go if she thought she was in danger. He doesn’t want to jeopardize his place here by seeming like he doesn’t trust them either. 

“Will you be alright, Slaine?” Princess Asseylum asks, a hint of worry in her voice. 

Slaine looks at the boy he will be left alone with. Inaho is looking straight ahead, expressionless. Slaine likes the happy, excitable friends much more than this robot, but he sighs and says “I’ll be fine. Be safe, your Highness”

She nods her consent with a smile, and hurries to meet the others, Eddelrittuo rushing behind her.

Inaho starts walking in a different direction, again without saying a word to Slaine. Slaine sighs softly again as he follows this weird boy. 

Surprisingly, it’s Inaho that breaks the silence first. 

“Bat.” 

Slaine flushes at the strange nickname, but retorts with a sharp “Orange.”

They had not stopped walking during this exchange, and when Inaho doesn’t make an effort to say anything else, Slaine takes initiative. He can’t stand this awkward silence anymore. 

“Uh…actually, my name is Slaine”

Inaho turns to face him.

“I know. And I’m sure you’ve gathered that my name is Inaho”

Slaine nods. “Why did you call me Bat, anyway?”

Inaho looks at Slaine questioningly, like it should be obvious. 

“Because of the shape of your sky carrier.”

Slaine blinks in surprise, and couldn’t contain to small chuckle that escapes. To think that this highly analytical, logical boy with his complex plans and emotionlessness would nickname him for something so simple. He would have expected something like ‘martian sky carrier 945’. Maybe Inaho wasn’t as robotic as he seemed. 

Slaine wasn’t surprised by the next question though, he had been waiting for it. 

“I’m sure Captain Magbaredge will ask the same later, but how did you know Seylum was alive?”

Slaine bites down the retort telling Inaho not to address her Highness with such familiarity. He knew he would have to answer this question eventually. Princess Asseylum seemed to trust, and even like, Inaho. Though, Slaine didn’t know how anyone could really like the coldness of this boy.

So, he explains about how he was with Sir Trilliam and learned that the Princess was still alive and about the assassination attempt. He knew what Inaho’s next question would likely be, so he went on to explain that he knew where she was by tracking the Orange Kataphrakt that she was last seen with. He explained how he got information from Sir Vlad’s fight with Inaho, and how he escaped on the sky carrier and came here. 

Inaho’s eyes had never left his face all the while it took him to tell his story. At the end, Slaine flushed and looked away, embarrassed by the intensity of the stare. 

-

Inaho was satisfied with Slaine’s story. For now. It all made sense logically, and connected with the events that Inaho himself had witnessed. So he voiced the other thought on his mind.

“You fought very well against that martian Kataphakt”

Inaho noticed Slaine’s face turned red for the third time during their conversation. He must be easily flustered.

“T-thank you! You did too. We made a good team…” he trailed off, and Inaho was saved from responding as they had reached the door to the sleeping quarters. He would continue his prodding about Slaine’s skills at a later time.

“Here are the sleeping quarters. Calm and I will also bunk here. There should be many beds available. The civilians and those drafted have separate space”

Slaine nods, and claims a bottom bunk as Inaho goes over the typical procedures of the crew and ship. Inaho says that they will work on getting Slaine some extra clothes and uniforms, and then they were leaving. 

Inaho had more time to process Slaine’s story now.

“So other martians know Seylum is still alive. It must be safe to assume that those involved in the original assassination are also aware and are probably still looking for her. And now they might also be looking for you too, since you know she is alive. They probably know where to find her as well.”

Slaine’s shoulders slump in defeat and he lowers his head.

“Yes. That is most likely the case. They probably have an even better idea of where she is now that I’m here. I shouldn’t have let you bring me aboard. They might be tracking me…”

“No.” 

Slaine’s head jerks up in surprise.

“They would have found her anyway. The Deucalion is not very inconspicuous. Also, only the Vers royalty could have activated its aldnoah drive. They would have figured it out soon enough. And by taking you on, we have gained valuable insight and skill."

Slaine smiles slightly at the unexpected reassurance. 

“We do need to be aware of what their next move will be though. I ordered you sky carrier to be repaired and searched for any tracking devices. We should prepare as best we can for another attack.”

“Well… the most likely person to come after me would be Count Cruhteo… er… the martian that I stayed with.”

“How will he come after you?”

“Probably in his Kataphakt… the Tharsis”

“Can you tell me anything useful about Tharsis?”

“Er…I think it has a limited view into the future…” 

Slaine sees Inaho take out his tablet and begin typing away on it. 

“So it has some sort of predictive analytics.”

“Yes, that’s right”

“What can you tell me about what it is equipped with…”

Inaho questions Slaine about the specs of Tharsis all the way to the mess hall. He finds that he actually kind of enjoys the conversation. Inaho is very thorough in his questioning, and Slaine isn’t used to someone actually caring about what he is saying. Inaho becomes very intense during the conversation, which, in Slaine’s opinion, is a huge improvement from his usual stoniness. 

He already figured that Inaho was very smart. But he hadn’t realized how much he likes having a conversation with someone who can understand what he is saying and offer his own input. He is surprised to see that Inaho doesn’t mind being wrong or not knowing something. If Slaine had to correct him, he would simply nod in agreement and note down the new information. Slaine is relieved the topic stays away from what kind of person Count Cruhteo is. 

Slaine finds himself in an animated conversation about differences in martain kataphakts when the reach the mess hall. He is actually a little disappointed when they reach a table with the group he met earlier.

“So is the aldnoah drive constantly activated? Even when –“

“Inaho! You can’t just question someone through dinner!” Inko cries in dismay. 

Inaho stops talking, and becomes less intense and more emotionless again. Slaine finds himself getting a little upset that Inko snuffed out the first signs of emotion Slaine had seen from Inaho since boarding. 

The disappointment leaves when he looks at his plate of food. 

“Wow! Is this chicken? And fruit?” 

Slaine is staring at his food, not having seen anything every look so delicious.

Everyone, save Inaho, laughs at that. Slaine is embarrassed, but they are all smiling at him. They aren’t making fun of him. 

“You guys must really eat dirt on mars if you think this is good” Calm says, laughing. 

“Yeah. There’s not much. And only the high class get what earth sends up. Even then it is prepackaged, processed food.”

“Hey! Inaho! Are you even listening?!” Inko has noticed that Inaho has had his eyes glued to his tablet since he sat down.

“No. It’s not important”

“Hey!-“ She gets ready to lecture him on his manners when Princess Asseylum and Eddeulrittuo arrive, plates laden with their own food.

“Oh! Slaine! Isn’t this food just wonderful?”

“Y-yes, your Highness” everyone giggles again as the two settle down at their table.

“So, Slaine. How was it like being alone with Mr. Social here” Inko glares at Inaho, still looking at his tablet.

“Err…” 

Calm takes that moment to chime in. “Yeah Inaho sucks at small talk and normal human contact”

Slaine laughs along with everyone, and then glances at Inaho to see how he is reacting to being talked about like this. Inaho doesn’t seem bothered by his friends’ comments, but Slaine doesn’t know if he would even be able to tell if Inaho was upset. At least he wasn’t looking at his tablet anymore. 

“It…was actually kind of fun.” Noticing the disbelieving stares he was receiving, he hurried to explain “We talked about kataphakt stuff” 

Everyone nodded at that, as if they understood everything now. Slaine felt Inaho’s eyes on him, but knew he would be even more embarrassed if he turned to look at him. 

“Have you seen the simulator yet, Slaine?” asked Inko. When he shook his head no, she continued. “It’s really nice. It makes learning the controls easier! The other day Yuki said that-“

“Yuki?”

“Oh! You haven’t met Yuki yet? She’s Inaho’s sister!”

Slaine blanches at this. 

_There’s a female version of him around here somewhere?!_

They all seem to read his mind, and grin at each other. 

“Don’t worry, she’s nothing like Inaho!” Inko says cheerfully. “She can actually hold a conversation” she adds with more bite and another glare in Inaho’s direction. Slaine joins in the laughter again.

_I don’t think I’ve ever laughed together with so many people before._

He is thoroughly enjoying himself when Inaho finally speaks.

“Actually, Seylum, I wanted to talk to you for a few minutes. Do you have time?”

“Of course!” 

Slaine has lost most of his reservations about her Highness’s safety here, and Seylum obviously trusts everyone. So when her and Inaho get up and walk away, he turns back to the group. He joins them in laughing at a story about one of Calm’s incidents in school, to Calm’s halfhearted protests. 

-

Inaho led Seylum up to the deck of the ship since they were currently stationary, and he knew that she loved the blue sky. 

“You have saved me countless times since we arrived on Earth, Inaho. Thank you so much.” 

While the statement is not untrue, Inaho doesn’t want her to get the wrong idea about why he did it. He doesn’t deserve her gratitude when he was just doing what was best for himself and Earth.

“I wasn’t fighting for you in particular, Seylum. It’s because I was drafted. If I don’t fight, it puts me in danger, too”

She doesn’t seem perturbed by his blunt statement. She just turns to him and smiles.

“Nevertheless, that does not change the fact that I owe you my life. Thank you”

Inaho can see there is no point wasting time trying to convince her otherwise. Instead, he jumps right into what he really wants to talk about.  
“Slaine was looking for you on Tanegashima” 

Seylum starts fiddling with something in the front of her gown. She pulls out a silver pendant.

“What’s that?”

“Slaine gave this to me as a good luck charm before I went to Earth. He is the son of a scientist who visited Mars to study aldnoah.”

The pendant looks pretty sturdy. But Inaho is surprised it still survived its trip with Seylum so far. He would have expected it to be lost or broken long ago.

“I heard all manner of stories regarding Earth from him. About the sea. About the sky.”

Inaho suddenly remembers Seylum telling him about her friend who incorrectly told her why the sky was blue. 

_Its Rayleigh lighting, not the refraction of light._

Inaho makes a mental note to make Slaine aware of his mistake later. He wonders where Slaine learned this incorrect information. He imagines Slaine talking excitedly to the martian princess, telling her about plants and animals and earth. He realizes Seylum is still talking.

“As I heard these stories, I grew more and more enamored of Earth. As a result, I wanted more than anything to come to Earth. And I wished to establish peaceful relations with Earth.” She looks uncharacteristically troubled at that statement. 

Understandable, considering the current state of Earth’s relations with Mars.

Her serious attitude completely changes as she sees a bird. 

_She must have never seen one before._

“It’s just as Slaine said!”

Inaho decides he has gotten enough information about Slaine from her for now. Slaine must have lived with her for a while on Mars. He was the son of a scientist, Inaho would research that later. Slaine also told her many (some incorrect) stories about Earth. 

_Slaine must have been missing Earth to tell her so much. Was he reliving his time on Earth through her?_

He glances at Seylum still completely enthralled by the common sea gulls, hair blowing in the breeze.

 _When was the last time he saw a bird? Or felt the ocean breeze?_  
  
-  
  
After dinner the group take Slaine on a mini tour of the ship, saying they knew Inaho would be a horrible tour guide. He found that he really likes the group. They are constantly happy and laughing, despite being in the midst of a war. 

They seem to like Slaine too. They ask for his opinion, and want to hear what he says. He almost feels like he belongs, despite only being here for one day.  
The ship is very new for them too, so they all explore together. They mostly find insignificant places, but the fun is in being with them.

“Aw man! Another supply closet!” Calm closes the door of the 4th supply closet they have come across. “I wanted to find some sort of secret martian room full of cool stuff!”

They decide it’s probably time to end the tour, and Slaine agrees. He is exhausted. The girls split off, promising to see them tomorrow, and Calm shows him to the showers. Calm manages to find a t shirt and some sweat pants for him to change into, promising to find him a clean uniform eventually. 

They get back to the sleeping quarters, and Slaine notices that Inaho isn’t there, despite it being so late. He’s too tired to think about it much, and falls asleep almost immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> This chapter is supposed to span the rest of episode 8.
> 
> I have lot's of ideas I'm working my way towards. Hopefully it all goes well and doesn't feel too rushed.
> 
> Sorry for any mistakes :)


	3. Chapter 3

Slaine woke up feeling a hundred time better. For the first time in a long time he was actually excited to see what the day held. He sat up and stretched, noticing how empty the room was. He also didn’t hear any noise coming from outside. 

He felt panic rising. Where was everyone? They should be just waking up and getting ready too. There should be noise of people talking and moving around. Was there an attack? Were they in trouble?

He shot out of bed, ready to race to find out what was wrong. But then he saw Inaho. He was sitting in a bed not far away, looking at his tablet.

“Good morning, Bat” Inaho put his tablet away and stood up.

“Where is everyone? Why are you here?” Slaine felt his pulse begin to calm down. Inaho didn’t act like there was anything wrong. 

_Not like I’d be able to tell anyway, but I trust he would have said something._

“Everyone’s already up and doing their daily duties. It’s almost noon.”

“What! Why didn’t you wake me?!” Slaine can’t remember the last time he slept in so late, if ever. 

“You needed rest to recover from the battle yesterday. Also, you were thrown into a new environment with new people all within 24 hours. Your body and mind were exhausted. Plus, you have not yet been assigned any duties, so it would have been pointless to wake you”

“And you were here the whole time?”

“Yes. I didn’t know when you would wake up, and I didn’t want you to wake up alone in a new place. You might have panicked” 

Slaine can’t tell if Inaho noticed his earlier panic, or had just predicted it. He was embarrassed either way.

“Y-you can’t just watch people sleep, Orange! It’s weird!”

“I wasn’t watching you. I was researching on my tablet.”

“Still…let’s just go! I’ve wasted enough of the day as it is.”

-

Inaho lied.

He had been watching Slaine sleep. 

He hadn’t planned on it, but when he was on his tablet waiting for Slaine to wake up, he couldn’t help but glance at the sleeping blonde martian. 

And when he did he noticed that Slaine slept kind of restlessly. It wasn’t very noticeable, and Inaho doubted anyone else would have been able to tell. Slaine would slightly shift. Then a few minutes later he would turn to one side. He might stay like that for a while, but Inaho could tell that his breathing wasn’t quite steady enough to be in deep, peaceful sleep. Eventually he would turn to the other side. This process repeated, with slight variations, until Slaine awake just now. 

Inaho found he couldn’t pull his eyes away. He wanted to see the depths of Slaine’s discomfort. He had seemed happy enough during the day, so maybe it was stress from the battle they had just earlier. But he couldn’t say that for sure. 

So, Inaho couldn’t help but watch Slaine sleep. And he planned on doing it again. He needed to see if it was battle stress, or something more. Even Inaho knew better than to tell Slaine that though (he found 12 reasons not to), so he lied. 

-

They headed to the mess hall, since Slaine hadn’t eaten breakfast yet. It was still early for lunch, so there weren’t many people there yet.

“Are you sure you’re hungry? It’s not lunch time yet…” Slaine asked when he saw Inaho also put some eggs on his plate. He didn’t want Inaho to eat when he didn’t want to just because of Slaine. 

“I woke up early and ate, so breakfast was a while ago for me.”

“You came and ate? I thought you were supposed to be in the room so I didn’t wake up alone?” It’s not like Slaine had wanted Inaho to stay in the room with him the whole time, but the logic didn’t really make sense. What if he had woken up in those 20 minutes that Inaho was eating? 

“I wake up before everyone else. If you had woken up before I came back, you wouldn’t have been alone. Also, Calm usually sleeps in, so there would have been a familiar face.”

“ah…” 

_He really does cover everything…_

“I think we should discuss battle plans. We are going to get attacked sooner or later. And it would be better to be prepared”

“Uh...ok”

_Does he ever stop thinking about war?_

“So you said that this Count Cruhteo is the most likely person to come after you, and that he might be involved in the assassination attempt”  
“That’s right… Shouldn’t you be discussing this with the captain?”

“I might, later. But right now you’re my most valuable piece of information. We can formulate a plan and then inform her.”

_Is he the genius behind all the defeated martian kataphakts?_

Slaine knows he should have realized it earlier, especially with him having fought with Inaho against one. But it seems that Inaho really does most of the thinking. 

“He will most likely come with his kataphakt, the Tharsis, which has predictive analytics that make dodging attacks easy.”

“That’s not exactly true. Tharsis can see a few seconds into the future, and is extremely fast. But the pilot needs to be fast and skilled enough to use that to his advantage.”

“Ah, so it should be possible to hit it if the driver is not reacting fast enough.”

“Yes…but Count Cruhteo is very skilled with the Tharsis. He definitely knows how to use it to its full potential.”

“But, if we can execute simultaneous attacks, he might be overwhelmed and not be able to keep up with the analytics.” The intensity is back in Inaho’s face and voice. Slaine feels himself getting excited from feeding on Inaho’s energy.

“Maybe… but Count Cruhteo has fought many battles. He is probably practiced in dealing with multiple enemies. And he is smart enough to retreat and come back later if he is too outnumbered.”

“Hmm… then we could try to distract him. Or make him angry. Anything that will make him lose focus, even for a second.” Inaho types something into his tablet, and takes a bite of scrambled eggs. He appears to be thinking as he chews. Slaine knows what the next question will be, and he doesn’t really want to answer it. 

“What can you tell me about him?” Inaho finished his bite, and turned his eyes to Slaine.

Slaine knows he is going to have to be careful of what he says. 

“Well… Princess Asseylum was staying with him, and so was I. He seemed very loyal to her Highness. So he is probably able to put on a good act.” Slaine knew this was a fact. He never let on to Princess Asseylum how he really treated Slaine. So, Slaine knew that if it was beneficial to him, Count Cruhteo could act like a completely different person. “He also often tried to persuade her Highness not to go to Earth.”

“If he was planning the assassination he would have wanted her on Earth though. Maybe he really was loyal and wasn’t involved?”

“Maybe, but she was always adamant about going. I think he knew he could never change her mind. Maybe he kept arguing to keep suspicion off of him.” 

“That could be a possibility.” Inaho takes another bite of egg as he considers. 

“Well, even if he wasn’t involved, he used her supposed death to wage war with Earth. And if he finds her alive he might want to kill her anyway so the war can continue. And he will definitely come after me, so he is a threat either way.” Slaine hesitates before adding the next part. “He…he really hates terrans”

“Ah, is there a specific reason why?”

“No. At least I don’t think so. Most marians hate terrans, so it’s not surprising.”

“You were a terran living up there. Did everyone know you were not a martian?”

“Yes…I experienced the prejudice first hand” Slaine trails off. “But I was the son of someone important, so it wasn’t bad” He hurries to add, hoping he didn’t raise any suspicion in Inaho’s mind. 

“Yes, Seylum told me you were the son of a scientist” 

“W-what! You talked to her Highness about me?!” Slaine knows his face is red again. He doesn’t even want to know the stories about him that she told Inaho.

“Yes. She seemed like the best source of information.”

“What about me?! I can probably tell you more about myself than someone else can!”

“I wanted an unbiased account. But don’t worry, she didn’t say much. Just that you told her stories of earth. And she showed me your pendant.”

“S-she kept it?” Slaine’s heart lightens at this news. 

“Yes. I was surprised too. I thought it would have gotten lost by now.”

“It was the only thing I had left of my father… I hoped it would give her good luck.”

“There’s no such thing as a pendant giving good luck.”

“I know that of course, Orange! It was just a sentiment!” Slaine can feel his face is on fire. Inaho seems to set him off more than anyone ever has.

“I see. So was that your job? To teach Seylum about Earth?”

“No, not exactly. I had a lot of duties. Teaching Seylum was more of something she requested.” Slaine is glad the topic has shifted to something a little safer. “I was trained to be a soldier, mostly.”

“So that’s how you know how to fight so well.”

“Yes, I was trained in hand to hand combat as well as in martian technology.” Inaho nods, and Slaine takes the chance to learn a bit about the boy beside him. “What about you? Were you a soldier too?”

To Slaine’s surprise, Inaho shakes his head. “No, I was a student. We were drafted when we failed to leave with the refugee ships.”

“How do you know so much and fight so well then?!”

“All students are trained in Kataphakts, in case something like this happened again.”

“So…Earth never really trusted Mars.”

“Of course not.”

Slaine laughs darkly. “I guess for a good reason.” Slaine looks down at his plate and moves some food around with his fork. “I guess I should tell you thank you for trusting me and bringing me to her Highness.”

“I didn’t do it for you or for her. It just seemed like the best course of action. I just as likely might have shot you down. Like I told Seylum earlier, you don’t need to thank me.”

Slaine drops his fork and gives Inaho a disbelieving look. “Orange! You’re supposed to accept people’s thanks! You can’t just say that when they are trying to thank you…Wait! You said that to her Highness?!”

“Yes. She didn’t get upset.”

“That’s because she is too nice to take offense and call you out!” Slaine sees Inaho isn’t going to waste time defending himself for something he believes is right. Slaine settles for muttering “Just say ‘you’re welcome’ next time.”

“So your father is a scientist who went to Mars to study aldnoah.”

“You can’t just change the topic whenever you feel like it…” Slaine mutters, but he isn’t really too bothered by it. “Yes. My full name is Slaine Troyard. I don’t really know much about my father. He was busy researching most of my life.”

Inaho makes a mental note to research Dr. Troyard later. “I assume he is deceased, and that is why you were with Count Cruhteo.”

“…Yes” 

“We still need to formulate a plan of action against the count, but we can do that gradually over the day. There’s more to do today than just sit at lunch.”

“Yes, I already feel like I wasted half the day…”

“You’re used to waking up early.” It is a statement, not a question. Slaine answers anyway.

“Yes, martian training started early. Plus, I had to finish all my tasks early enough if I wanted to have time to teach Princess Asseylum. Why do you wake up so early, anyway?”

By now, Inaho has finished his eggs, and Slaine’s plate is empty as well. Slaine notices that there are a lot more people in the hall now. He was so caught up in the conversation with Inaho that he didn’t even notice them come in.

_That’s not good. I need to stay aware of my surroundings. I can’t let myself get distracted._

“I like to use my tablet without being forced into talking.”

Slaine laughs at this. 

_I should have known._

But then he sobers up. “Ah…I’m sorry that I ruined your time alone”

“I enjoy talking with you more anyway.”

-

Inaho didn’t lie.

It would have been something he would have just said to appease Inko, but with Slaine, he is surprised to find that it is true. He doesn’t feel the need to filter his thoughts when he is with Slaine. Also, Slaine is obviously intelligent. Inaho likes the conversations that they have about tatics and battle plans. Surprisingly though, he finds he also likes talking about Slaine’s personal life on mars. 

Plus, he somehow likes making Slaine laugh…

-

“Orange! Were you even listening to me?! You did that before with Inko, too! You can’t just ignore people when they talk to you and then pretend you were listening!”

“Why not?” Inaho deadpans. 

“W-what! Because they are trying to tell you something! They are expecting you to be paying attention…” 

“Though I don’t know why anyone would want to talk to a robot like you…” Slaine mutters good naturedly under his breath. He knows by now that Inaho has more emotions than he shows. 

To Slaine’s great surprise, Inaho actually smiles at this. It’s not a big smile. Just a slight upturning of his lips, but it’s probably the most surprised Slaine’s been since being on this ship. It completely changes Inaho’s face. It makes him look younger, and more like a real person. Slaine can’t help but stare, his mouth opens a little in surprise.

“What?” Inaho’s face is expressionless again. “You must know I’m not actually a robot”

Slaine closes his mouth, and then begins to laugh. He finds it hard to stop. Inaho’s smile comes back, and Slaine wonders if he’s witnessing a once in a lifetime occurrence.

“I will pay attention when you talk from now on. I was just going over something important in my head. Besides, Inko usually says the same thing over and over again. It is unnecessary to listen. But I enjoy listening to you” 

Inaho gets up and starts walking away. Slaine stares after him, not knowing what just happened. The he’s running after him.

“Hey! Orange! Wait for me! You can’t just walk off without me!”

Slaine and Inaho walk off, Inaho starting an animated conversation about terran vs martian stealth techniques. Slaine feels like his opinion of Inaho has shifted. He can’t get the image of Inaho’s soft smile out of his mind.

-

Inko always practiced hard when it was her turn with the simulator. She knew she wasn’t anywhere near as good as Inaho, and probably wouldn’t ever be. It irked her, but she had come to accept that. What she wanted though, was to be good enough to be of use to Inaho in battle. She didn’t want to be a burden on him.  
  
Also, she hoped that if it ever came to it, she could save Inaho. She wanted to be the one saving him for once, instead of it always being the other way around. And if something bad did actually happen, she would never forgive herself if she couldn’t save him just because she hadn’t taken practice seriously enough. So she always gave it her all when she was in the simulator.

When she heard Yuki start talking about Inaho, she let her focus drop a little to listen in.

“Since he met a girl he likes, and all…”

At that, Inko forgot all about giving it her all. 

“Come again?! What’s that supposed to mean?!" She gets even more upset when Yuki begins explaining how marrying a martian isn’t the worst thing, and that a martian princess would have lots of money.

Inko stops the simulation, and climbs out of the simulator. “Is that true?! Is that what he’ll do?!”

“I don’t get that vibe at all. He never cracks a smile, and he has that same old grumpy look on his face…” Calm says, and for once, Inko is glad he opened his mouth. 

Then Yuki explains that it is ‘totally different’ and that ‘she can tell because she’s his sister’ and that Inaho is ‘on cloud nine’, and Inko is even more upset.

The tipping point is when Yuki says “That cold fish listening intently to a girl is unusual in and of itself, right? For that boy, it’s the ultimate sign of affection” Inaho never listened to Inko with so much focus as he was Princess Asseylum.

Inko runs up to Yuki. “Warrant Officer Kaizuka! May I take a break?” She huffs it all in one breath, too worked up to hide her emotions. She runs over to Inaho and the princess, needing to know what they are talking about. 

-

“So you performed reverse CPR on him and saved his life.” 

Inaho had just started another conversation with Seylum about Slaine. He wanted to know more about Slaine, but felt that he needed another person’s account. He wasn’t sure how much Slaine would actually tell him, or what details he would leave out. He could reconcile both of their stories later. That was the best way. He was deeply focused on the conversation, so he didn’t notice Inko and Calm had come up until Inko spoke.

“You’re just talking about Slaine!?” 

Inaho was surprised by the relief in her voice, and her red face. What did she think they were talking about?

“Where is Slaine anyway?” Calm asked.

“Dr. Yagarai wanted to examine him. So I took him there and then came here.” Inaho had wanted to stay for Slaine’s medical examination. But Slaine exclaimed “You can’t just sit in on someone’s exam, Orange!” and Dr Yagarai chuckled and told Inaho he would bring Slaine back soon.

_Apparently there are a lot of things I ‘can’t just do’ with Bat._

Inaho smiles a bit at the memory of the long list of things Slaine told Inaho he can’t just do. 

“Did…did you just smile, Inaho?” Inko asks uncertainly. Inaho is sure the smile was for only a fraction of a second, but both of his friends are staring at him.

“Am I not allowed to?”

“…no…but you usually don’t. Especially not about something as boring as taking someone to Dr. Yagarai… did something happen there?”

“No. Nothing. I was just remembering something else.”

“Remembering what?!” Inko’s questions are getting more intense. 

“Nothing, it’s not important. I have to go find Slaine.”

“You don’t get to decide what’s not important to other people!” she yells after his retreating figure, then growls in frustration.

_Why is she acting so weird?_

-

Slaine isn’t really comfortable with the Doctor. But he knows it would just raise suspicion if he refused to be examined, especially after a battle. He is actually surprised they didn’t check him sooner. 

_I guess it’s because they also just arrived on the ship, and didn’t have everything set. And I seemed fine so there was no rush…_

Still, Slaine knew he was fine, so he really didn’t want to take off his shirt for the doctor. He was very glad at this moment that Inaho didn’t insist on staying for his exam. 

_Does he not know any manners? Or does he just not care? Maybe a mix of both._

Slaine was amazed at how easily Inaho got under his skin. But he was also amazed at how good it felt to have someone listen to him like Inaho did, how good it felt to make Inaho smile…

But he doesn’t really want anyone seeing his bare chest. Count Cruhteo was usually careful not to leave too many marks, especially not permanent ones on Slaine where people could see them. 

But sometimes he was so angry that he didn’t want to be careful. Then, he would have Slaine remove his shirt, so that when he was done, Slaine’s clothing would hide any evidence. 

It wasn’t much, but Slaine had some scars across his chest and shoulders. He hoped that the doctor would assume they were from battle. And he hoped no one else would ever have to see them.

Luckily, the doctor just asks Slaine routine questions (“What’s your age?”, “Are you in any pain?”). Slaine thinks he got lucky when the doctor pronounces him perfectly healthy and says he can leave. 

But as he reaches for the door, the doctor says “You can come to me if you have any concerns…or need to talk about anything.” It might not mean anything, but Slaine isn’t sure. He nods, thanks the doctor, and leaves. 

He is momentarily confused. Where should he go? Then he hears Inaho’s voice behind him.

“Slaine.” 

Slaine jumps at the sound of his name, and whips around to face Inaho. 

“W-what are you doing here? Did you stand outside the door the whole time…?” Slaine wonders how much can be heard through the walls.

“No. I just came to see if you were done. I arrived the same time you came out.” Slaine is relieved to hear that, and is actually pretty happy to see Inaho. 

“So what were you doing before, then?” Slaine is curious if Inaho does anything fun in his free time, or if he just sits on his tablet all day.

“I talked to Seylum.” This instantly makes Slaine suspicious, he narrows his eyes at Inaho. 

_Last time he talked to Princess Asseylum, it was about me._

But before he can make a formal accusation, Inaho changes the subject.

_Does he do that when he’s avoiding a topic?_

“I assume your checkup went well.” 

Slaine decides to let the topic go… for now. “Well, it’s not like I’m dying or anything.”

“Good. Let’s go to the simulator then.” Inaho doesn’t even wait for a response before walking off. 

Slaine catches up to him. “Why the simulator?”

“I want to see how well you fight in a terran kataphakt.”

“That makes sense I guess. What are the main differences between a terran and martian kataphakt?”

“Well, I’ve never operated a martian kataphakt, so I don’t have firsthand knowledge. But I do know that the martian controls are probably more intuitive.”

“Yes, I can see how that’s probably true. But it really depends on the model and skill of the martian kataphakt. Some are much more complex to work than others.”  
“Ah. What about the visual controls?”

They discussed differences all the way back to the simulator room, where Slaine was happy to the rest of Inaho’s (and his?) friends. 

He was surprised to see that Inaho seemed a little annoyed when they all came running up to them. 

_Is he showing more emotion, or am I just getting better at seeing it?_

“Why are you guys still here?”

“Well, when you said you were going to get Slaine, we decided to wait here until you got back.” Inko also seemed a little annoyed at Inaho. 

_Did they have a fight? That idiot probably said something offensive._

“Why did you want to bring Slaine here anyway?” Calm questions.

“He should get used to a terran Kataphakt.” 

“Why?” Inko demands. “Did he get drafted to fight?”

“It’s the most obvious position for him. Why would he do anything else?”

Inko’s eyebrows are drawn down, and she seems really angry at Inaho now. “Inaho! You aren’t in charge of assignments! You can’t force someone to take the most dangerous job!” 

Calm backs up Inko. “Yeah! What if he wanted to be a mechanic like me? Or work in medical with Dr. Yagarai?”

Slaine feels something warm in his chest from these people trying to protect him from danger, and trying to give him a choice. He’s never really had that happen before. No one ever cared what Slaine wanted. 

“The danger doesn’t matter. We are in a war. We are all in danger anyway. Plus, his skills will be most useful in battle.”

Slaine knows Inaho is right. But that doesn’t make him feel any better about Inaho not caring about the danger to him.

_Well, he doesn’t seem to care about danger to himself. Why would I expect him to care about me?_

“Yeah, I’ll probably be the most helpful in battle, but thanks anyway” He gives them a smile and follows Inaho over to the simulator. 

The interior is very similar to the martian kataphakts he is used to, so he gets situated easily. Once everything is powered on he hears the communication channel open, and Inaho begins giving instructions from outside. 

“I am controlling the simulation. I can also see what you do. I’ll start it off easy so that you can get a feel for the controls.”

“Ok.” Slaine is already a little overwhelmed at the new machinery, but he has always been a fast learner. If he had been captured by not so friendly terrans, he might have needed to hijack a kataphakt to escape, and he wouldn’t have let a little thing like being unfamiliar with the controls allow him to be caught or killed. 

“Detecting an enemy thermal signal. Preparing to engage” He manages to gun down the enemy, and feels proud of himself for defeating it so easily on the first try.

Then he feels that he is being attacked from behind. He curses. He hadn’t noticed the two new thermal signals appear on the screen while he was fighting the first enemy. The screen was in a different place than on the other kataphakts Slaine was used to, so he wasn’t in the habit of keeping his attention on it yet.

He spins around and starts attacking the other enemies, but by then he is too late. The simulation ends as he is quickly killed.

“Hey! I thought you were going to start it easy!”

“If you can’t even handle that maybe it was the wrong choice to put you in battle…” Slaine thinks he hears teasing note in Inaho’s voice. So he doesn’t get offended.  
“I don’t see you jumping into battle with a martian kataphakt!”

_But that’s probably only because there isn’t one here._

Slaine grins at the thought of Inaho struggling to learn the foreign technology. “Let’s go again!”

-

Inaho can’t keep another small smile off of his face as he banters back and forth with Slaine over the communication channel. 

Slaine’s first attempt wasn’t that great, but Inaho had played dirty on purpose. Slaine learned quickly how to divide his attention between all the important screens. His second attempt was much better. By the 6th attempt, Slaine was able to successfully eliminate all the enemies without dying.

“Hey you guys! Are you almost done? We’re getting tired of standing here!” Inko shouts at them from across the room, where her and Calm are still waiting. Inaho had completely forgot about them. He shuts down the simulation and Slaine climbs out.

“You did pretty well.”

“Pretty good?! I’d say I amazing considering I had to deal with your unfair set ups!” Slaine pretends to be upset, but there is laughter in his voice and a smile on his face as he says it.

Inaho smiles. “I guess, considering you didn’t have any prior knowledge or training on this kataphakt. I’ll show you some more techniques that will be useful later.”

Slaine is energized by Inaho’s half compliment and his smile, so he can’t keep a smile of his own off his face as they walk to the others.

-

Inko really liked their new friend, Slaine. Inko was also glad their new friend was a boy.

She had liked Inaho for a while now, God knows why. She could barely get him to listen to her, much less hold a full-fledged conversation with her.

She really couldn’t figure out why she liked him. She glanced over at Calm. Maybe it was because he’s the only guy she really knew who wasted constantly rating women. Maybe she knew that it would actually mean something if he took the time to talk to her, or even smiled at her.

So, she was glad Slaine was a boy. Because if it was a girl that Inaho was discussing with the princess, if it was a girl that she saw Inaho talking to as intently as he did with Slaine, if it was a girl that she saw Inaho smile at (not once, but twice!) she might just lose her mind.

-

Calm really liked their new friend, Slaine. But Calm was also sad that their new friend was a boy.

The only cute new girl on the ship turned out to be the martian princess! He didn’t necessarily care that she was martian… but the fact that she was a princess made her strictly off limits. Besides, he would never admit it, but he was kind of scared of her maid that followed her everywhere. 

So, Calm was sad that Slaine was a boy. Because a cute new girl would have been so much better. Though, Inaho probably would have gotten that girl too. Especially judging by the way even Slaine was following Inaho around, and laughing at things he says. If there was a new girl, she would have definitely fallen for Inaho anyway. 

-

On their way out of the similar room, an older girl with long, black hair came in and bumped into Slaine.

“Oh! I’m sorry!” She said before Slaine could apologize. She turned to look at Inaho. “There you are Nao!” She turned back to Slaine. “Oh! You must be the terran my little brother rescued from those horrible martians! Nao is so brave!”

_Nao? Little brother? Rescued? Is this… Inaho’s sister?_

He looked to the others for help, but they just grinned back at him. And Inaho was as expressionless as usual. 

“Uh… I wouldn’t say rescued…” he shot a look in Inaho’s direction. “But my name is Slaine, nice to meet you.”

She gushed on. “Was Nao teaching you to use the simulator? He’s so kind.” 

_She sure thinks a lot of her brother. How are they even related?_

“Yuki.” Inaho catches her attention easily with her name.

“Oh, I was just wondering where you were. If you are done here you should go check on the princess! I’m sure you have a lot to talk about!” She says eagerly, and ends it with a wink. 

_What was that wink for? What does Inaho have to talk with her Highness about, and why is his sister so eager for him to do it? Somehow I don’t think it has to do with me this time. And why does Inko look so mad?_

“Yes.” Inaho starts to walk away. Slaine isn’t sure what he should do, but then Inaho looks behind him to Slaine. “Bat?” 

Slaine takes that as an invitation to follow, so he says bye to everyone. He hears Yuki mutter a confused “Bat?” to Inko, who throws up her hands and says “Who knows! It’s Inaho!”

Slaine waits until they are a safe enough distance from the room to speak up.

“So that was your sister.” He says with a grin. 

“Yes. I am aware that we are nothing alike.”

“She sure seemed to think highly of you.” Slaine couldn’t keep the smile off of his face.

Inaho sighed. “Yes. She can be rather silly and overprotective. She’s always taken care of me though, so it’s to be expected.”

_Wait… are Inaho’s parents also…?_

His train of thought and next question are interrupted when Eddelrittuo runs by carrying a bundle of clothes. 

Inaho beats him to his immediate question. “Aren’t you supposed to be with Seylum?”

“Her name is not Seylum! It is Her Royal Highness Asseylum!” Eddelrittuo took the words right out of Slaine’s mouth. 

Before he can say anything, the whole ship trembles and tilts. Slaine crashes into Inaho and they go falling to the floor. 

-

Count Saazbaum considered his options. Slaine knows about the assassination plan. He also knows the princess is still alive. Considering his blind devotion to her, he is probably with her right now. They both need to be eliminated. Now the situation has become riskier though. 

The terrans somehow got their hands of the Deucalion. He silently fumes at that. He will have to plan this well…

His train of thought is interrupted by an incoming video call.

“Count Saazbaum” Count Cuhteo greets. “I did what you asked and held off from going after Slaine Troyard. And now he has escaped off with terrans. Who knows what he is telling the filthy scum. I am going to retrieve him now.” He yells off screen “Prepare my Tharsis!”

Count Saazbaum considers, and decides that this might not be a bad idea. In fact, it might be the best course of action. Cruhteo could succeed in retrieving Slaine, which would make it easier for Saazbaum to eliminate him. Also, Saazbaum could judge just how powerful the terran’s weaponry and soldiers are, without having to risk himself in battle. And, if things went wrong, the loss of Count Cruhteo be for the best. He would probably need to be killed later anyway. If he somehow discovered that the princess was still alive, Saazbaum could make his move and eliminate all threats in one move. 

“Alright. Good luck then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! :)


	4. Chapter 4

Rayet couldn’t help it. It was the first time the princess was without her maid. And she was completely alone and vulnerable. How could she be so trusting of these people?! Why did they all accept her?! She was a martian, and all martians were the enemy. 

She thought that maybe when the princess revealed her true identity to the crew, that there would be some backlash. After all, they were all fighting against martians, and she was the reason they were fighting anyway! She was the cause of everything. 

The arrival of Slaine made everything worse. He was a terran that lived on Mars. He lived there for years, no doubt witnessing firsthand their cruelty, considering the looks Edelrittuo gave him. And still, he liked the princess! She couldn’t understand. She didn’t understand anything! Why did she have to be stuck on a ship with the girl who caused all of this? Why did her father have to die? Why couldn’t he have lived? They could have ran away from this together…they could have been together… If it wasn’t for her. 

Her mind was going in circles. She couldn’t even cry. She felt like the grief and anger was eating her from the inside out. She had to do something. She walked in a trance over to the other running shower. She had to do something or she would go mad. She saw a chain dangling, and grabbed it. She had to do something or she would die. She wrapped the chain around the princess’s neck and pulled, and pulled and pulled, until the princess was a collapsed heap on the floor. 

And just like that her mind cleared. She did this. She killed someone with her own hands. What had she done? What should she do?  
Then the ship rumbled and tilted. She slips to the floor, taking the shower curtain with her. She lands next to the princess’s body. The ship steadies as it hit the ground. She can’t stand this either. She drapes the curtain over the princess’s body and runs.

-

Slaine falls with Inaho as the ship shakes and tilts. He feels Inaho’s arms wrap around his shoulders as they are tossed around the hallway. It keeps head from hitting the floor as they slam into it. Inaho lets go as the ship stills. Slaine can’t deny that it felt nice to have someone touch him for the purpose of protecting him, not hurting him. 

“Are you all right?” Inaho asks Slaine, and when Slaine nods he looks at Eddelrittuo, who also gives confirmation. “What happened?”

The captain slowly walked through the still titled hallway towards them. “It looks like the aldnoah drive shut down.”

Slaine’s heart misses a beat, and Eddelrittuo exclaims “That shouldn’t be possible! This ship’s aldnoah was activated by Her Highness! So long as she lives, it can’t be shut down by another without her consent!”

“So long as she lives…” Then Inaho’s eyes widen and he gasps. “Where is Seylum?! Where is she?!”

Eddelrittuo is upset and confused. “She’s taking a shower! I left her there to get her clothes!” The girl is beginning to panic.

“Captain Magbaredge, call for medical assistance!” Inaho yells as he is up and running towards the showers. Slaine is right at his heels, and Eddelrittuo isn’t far behind.

They reach the woman’s showers and Inaho immediately runs in. Slaine hesitates. What if she is perfectly fine? He can’t just run in on her showering. He blushes at the thought. But then Eddelrittuo runs by him and he hears her yell “Princess!” He runs in after them. 

He stops short at the sight of Princess Asseylum unconscious on the ground, a shower curtain covering her body (He takes a second to appreciate that).

“Princess Asseylum…” He whispers, too distraught to think. 

“Bring towels!” Inaho yells, as he begins pressing on Princess Asseylum’s chest. “I’m going to use a defibrillator. We have to dry her off! Hurry!” Slaine is too shocked to react, but luckily Eddelrittuo quickly runs off to obey. Inaho’s face is in a grimace of concentration and effort as he keeps performing CPR. Slaine can’t look away from the horrible scene. 

The captain appears, carrying towels and the defibrillator. Inaho asks Eddelrittuo and the captain the dry the princess off, as he gets out the defibrillator. Slaine still can’t do anything but stare in horror. “Princess Asseylum.” He whispers again, with a catch in his voice. 

She is quickly dried off, and Inaho immediately hook the defibrillator to her. “Setting counter shock to 200 joules. Clear”. The jolt goes off and Slaine jumps at the sound and sudden movement of the princess’s limp body. Inaho starts CPR on her again. 

“I’ll do it!” Eddelrittuo yells. 

“No. You’re too light.” Inaho never misses a beat. Slaine wonders why he can’t say anything. He wants to volunteer himself, but he doesn’t know CPR, and wouldn’t be any help in his state anyway. 

“You think fast on your feet.” The captain says, and Slaine wonders how she can be so calm.

“We learn this in school.” Inaho is slightly sweating from the exertion now. 

“Students never take it seriously. All they do is giggle about the mouth-to-mouth.” The captain says. Slaine can’t imagine Inaho giggling at anything, much less mouth-to-mouth.

“It could save a life.” Inaho tips back the princess’s face, opens her mouth, and presses his lips to hers. He blows into her mouth a couple times before going back to pushing on her chest. Her body remains as lifeless as ever. Slaine's eyes are wide in horror. His mind is short circuiting. He can't think.

By now Eddelrittuo is beginning to cry, and Slaine can feel his eyes watering up as well. He doesn’t know what he would do if the princess actually died. 

He barely hears it when the captain asks if she should take over, and Inaho declines her. Slaine turns around as tears begin to freely flow from his eyes. Then he hears Inaho gasp and Princess Asseylum’s cough. 

He turns back around quickly. “Princess Asseylum!” He cries, his tears turning to ones of relief. She's alive. She's alive. 

“Good. Are you alright?” Slaine can actually hear the relief in Inaho’s voice.

“Inaho… Where am I?” Her voice is raspy, and Slaine’s worry comes back.

“It looks like you passed out while taking a shower. What happened?”

Inaho helps Seylum stand up, and the captain gives her a towel to wrap around herself. 

“I…” She trails off, looking at the floor in confusion. Then her eyes widen. “I was attacked…by her!” Slaine’s heart stops at this. 

And then a gun is pointed at his face. 

It’s the red head…Rayet, also wrapped in just a towel. “Don’t move!” She shouts. 

Inaho comes out from behind the shower wall. “Rayet? Why?” How can he be so calm, while Slaine is frozen in shock?

Then the bathroom door opens, and the doctor, Inaho’s sister, and another man rush in. “Where’s the patient?!” The doctor yells. Too much is happening. Everything is wrong. Wrong. Slaine can't process it. He can't move. He can't...

Rayet turns around, raising her gun in the air and shooting. “Stay back!” Slaine flinches at the gun shot, it wakes him from his daze, and then the gun is pointed back at his face. “Get back! Get out of the room! Now!” 

Slaine sees the captain give a small nod to the other group, and they back out slowly.

“Who are you?” Inaho asks. How can he be so calm in a situation like this?!

“A Versian –no, a martian.” Rayet's voice is full of hatred.

Inaho doesn’t even blink, but Slaine and Eddelrittuo gasp in surprise. And Asseylums eyes go distant.

“Why…?” She whispers, and Slaine’s heart hurts at the sadness in her voice.

“The one who tried to assassinate you at the Shinawara parade was my father. He was a martian spy living on earth. He was promised a title and reward if he killed you. But when he completed his mission, he was put down like a dog. To Silence him! Martians can’t be trusted! Martians are all the enemy!” She has become increasingly agitated and angry at she tells them this. Slaine can see that she is shaking. “I can’t go back to being a martian. But I’m not a terran, either.” Slaine gasps a little at this statement. It is what he has felt his whole life.

She continues, even angrier now. “But you… you revleaed yourself as a martian! In spite of that, you were accepted! In spite of that, you made a place for yourself! In spite of what you are!” She is crying now. “He thought they were on the same side, but they… it’s all your fault. My father is dead because you came here. This war started because you came here. We were betrayed because you came here. I’m all alone because you came here. Because you came… because you came… because you came!”

Seylum is visibly upset now, and she moves to cover her ears with her hands. 

“In spite of all that, how can they not hate you?!”

Seylum gets up, and walks out from behind the protection of the shower wall. Slaine gasps, and makes a move to stop her, but she stumbles and Inaho catches her. 

“I’m sorry” She whispers. “I’ve brought you nothing but misery, haven’t I? I was a fool.” She begins to walk towards Rayet, and Inaho lets her go. 

Slaine gasps again, and starts to go after her. But Inaho puts his arm in front of Slaine, blocking his way. Slaine turns to growl at Inaho, his eyes full of anger. They stare at each other, angry eyes to calm ones. Inaho’s calmness is infuriating him. 

Then Inaho gives him a small nod telling him to let her go. Slaine has to decide if he is going to trust Inaho’s instincts. Then he sees that Inaho’s calm eyes actually have worry in them. He rips his gaze from Inaho’s and watches the princess carefully, ready to make a move if it seems like anything is going to go wrong.

Princess Asseylum is still walking towards Rayet, who is backing up. “I thought I was working towards peace. But I was merely acting like a spoiled child. Relations with earth are worse than ever because of me. Many people have lost their lives because of me. No matter how much that I did nothing wrong, the reality of it is that I have brought misery to countless people’s lives. To yours. To your father’s. I will not ask you to forgive me. Nevertheless, I am sorry.” She falls to her knees in front of Rayet, who still has the gun aimed at her head. 

“Why? Why are you crying? My father tried to kill you! I tried to kill you too! Why won’t you hate me?! Why are you forgiving me?! Why are you being kind to me?! Why?! Why?! Why?!” She is shaking the gun violently now. And then suddenly Slaine hears three shots ring out. 

He jerks forward, but is again stopped by Inaho’s arm. He looks ahead in horror, but sees that all the shots went on the floor around the princess. He sags against Inaho in relief, his legs can't seem to support him anymore.

Then the other group bursts in from behind the door, Inaho’s sister raises a gun to Rayet’s back.

“How stupid are you? Give it a rest already…” Rayet then raises the gun to her own head. She smiles. “What am I even doing?”

“No!” The princess yells. And Slaine stumbles as Inaho runs forward, grabs the gun and twists it out of Rayet’s hand, and pins her to the floor. It happened so fast that Slaine almost missed it. 

“What are you doing?” She demands.

“Automatics won’t fire with the slide open. I thought this was the best way to stop you without discharging it accidentally.”

_He is like that even in a situation like this?!_

“No, I meant-” Rayet begins, but Inaho interrupts her.

“To be honest, I couldn’t care less if you’re a terran or a martian.” He lets her up, and Slaine is tense again. What is he doing?! “You hate our enemies, and those enemies are trying to kill you. But most importantly, you’ve fought at our side. What other reasons do I need?” He hands her the gun, and Slaine is outraged. He chokes in anger at Inaho’s stupidity.

“You trust me?” 

“At the very least, I don’t think we’re enemies.” Inaho’s wrong. She is definitely Slaine’s enemy. “As to whether we’ll be allies, that’s up to you.”

“You might come to regret this.” She takes the gun, and Slaine is ready for a fight. Inaho pulls her up with the gun, and the captain walks over. Why is everyone so calm?!

But then Rayet easily hands the captain the gun, and she is taken into custody by Inaho’s sister. 

Eddelrittuo has already run over to Princess Asseylum, and now Slaine does the same. He crouches down next to her, trying to shield her from everyone. But he is too late in that regard. She is safe now.

“Your Highness! Are you alright?!” She just nods sadly as she watches Rayet leave. 

Why did she do that? Why is she acting like this towards someone who tried to kill her?! Why did Inaho give her back the gun? Why...? He can't keep the snarl off his face as he watches her be led away.

The doctor rushes forward. “I need to take her to the medical room now.” Eddelrittuo helps her up and they both walk after him. She turns and gives Inaho and Slaine a small smile as they leave. 

-

The captain talked to them for a while, wanting to make sure that they were alright and check on the status of the ship. Finally, she lets them go and Slaine can let out the anger he has been holding in.

“Why did you do that?!” Slaine demands. He and Inaho are walking somewhere. Slaine doesn’t know where Inaho is taking him. 

“Which part?” Inaho’s eye never turn from the hall in front of them.

Slaine sputters. “Everything! Why did you let her go up to that girl?!” Now Inaho stops and looks at Slaine.

“I didn’t think Rayet would shoot her. I wanted to see how things would play out.”

“How things would play out?!” Slaine reaches out and grabs Inaho’s sweater, shaking him slightly. “You can’t just gamble with people’s lives for your own interests!”  
Inaho remains calm. “As I said, I didn’t think Rayet would shoot her. I would have stepped in if I thought she was in danger.”

Slaine isn’t appeased, not nearly. He is furious at Inaho. His knuckles are turning white from gripping Inaho's sweater so tight. “Why did you stop her from shooting herself?! Why did you give her back her gun?!”

“As I told her, I don’t think she’s my enemy. She has fought with us before. The enemy of our enemy shouldn’t be our enemy, at least. And she fights well. She is more useful alive.” Inaho considers Slaine, who is still holding Inaho’s sweater, albeit with a little less anger. “It would have been like if I had shot you down after the battle against that martian. It was obvious that you were the enemy of my enemy. And you assisted me. It would have been foolish not to try to work with you.”

“But I didn’t try to murder the princess!” 

“I didn’t know that. I thought you might have been part of the assassination plan. And anyway, I don’t think Rayet really wanted to kill Seylum. If she did she could have just shot her earlier. I think it was all the stress she was under. Seeing everyone accept Seylum, and even you, must have been hard on her, considering what she thinks of martians. I don’t think she will attempt anything again.”

Slaine feels all the fight leave him. He just feels sick now. He can't be angry at Inaho. None of this was Inaho's fault. He sighs, and releases Inaho. “Fine. But I still don’t trust her! And I don’t want her allowed anywhere near Princess Asseylum!”

Inaho shrugs. “That’s fine. She’s locked up anyway.”

They don’t say anything more as they continue walking. Slaine thinks about everything that happened. Slaine is surprised at the amount of trust he gave Inaho, allowing him the handle the situation.

_Well, I wasn’t much help anyway._

Slaine becomes dejected at the thought. He can’t stop thinking about how he just stood there when Princess Asseylum was practically dead. Why couldn’t he move? How was Inaho so calm? Why was Slaine so useless?

_If Inaho wasn’t there Princess Asseylum might be dead. I would have just stood there like an idiot when she was unconscious, and done something stupid when Rayet had the gun. If I had rushed her like I wanted to, she might have shot her Highness in panic…_

Inaho’s rationalization made sense in a way too. 

_How different would have everything been if he had shot me down back then? I would probably either be dead or back in martian hands. I would never have found Princess Asseylum. I would never had met Inaho…_

But there was no way he was letting her near Princess Asseylum again. He didn’t see too much of a problem in allowing her to fight against the martians… Maybe she would even get herself killed he thinks. Slaine feels disgusted at himself for that thought. He shouldn’t hope for someone to die in battle, even if they had done something horrible. 

He tries to calm himself down. Princess Asseylum is fine. Rayet is locked away. Princess Asseylum is alive. She's alive. Everything is ok. He repeats this over and over.

"Well...Thank you for saving her life..." Slaine flushes when he remembers how he just stood there. "I couldn't even move. I couldn't do anything... So thank you."

"I didn't do it for her. Or for you. This is war. I did it-"

"Orange!" Slaine groans, but he feels lighter at this normalcy. Everything was ok. Inaho was still being an idiot. Everything was ok. 

As they walk, Slaine lectures Inaho on the importance of accepting thanks, and Inaho argues with him, and Slaine feels like this is how it's supposed to be. He feels much calmer as they reach the mess hall.

_Ah, so that’s where we were going._

Slaine realizes just how hungry he is. He hasn’t eaten since that early lunch with Inaho, which seemed like days ago. 

The room is much more crowded than it was at lunch. Slaine sees all sorts of people sitting, from young children, to old men. They must be all the refugees who missed the ship. 

“Inaho! Slaine!” Slaine turns and sees Inko waving at them from a table where Calm and Nina were also seated. Inaho leads him over to the table. 

Nina turns her worried eyes onto them. “What happened? The ship went down. We heard Princess Asseylum is in the infirmary.”

“Yes. Rayet tried to kill her.” Inaho calmly tells them. They all gasp. 

“What! Why?!” They all start talking at once. Inaho waits until they stop yelling, and tells them what happened, from Princess Asseylum being unconscious to Rayet’s stunt with the gun.

“Wow, Inaho! You saved her!” Inko’s eyes are wide with shock. 

“Have you heard any news on her? Is she ok?” Slaine can’t help but ask.

Nina smiles. “Yes. Dr. Yagarai came by and told us that she is fine. She will need a few days to recover, but there is no lasting damage.”

Slaine releases the tension he didn’t realize he was holding. He feels the last of the bad energy leave him. “So everything did turn out ok then.”

“Yes, though I still can’t believe Rayet would…”

Nina interrupts Inko. “Let’s put all the negative thoughts away for now. It’s been a bad enough day as it is.”

Calm and Inko quickly agree with her, and the all fall silent as they slowly pick at their food.

Inko finally breaks the silence with a mischievous grin. “So, Slaine…. You’ve met Yuki now. What did you think?” 

Slaine’s face breaks into a grin at the memory. “I wouldn’t have ever thought that they were related.” Everyone is happy with the lighthearted change of discussion. They eagerly jump on the topic, ready to laugh again.

“I know! We can still hardly believe it.”

“She’s so energetic and nice.” Slaine says with a laugh. He thinks he feels Inaho huff next to him. Was he imagining it? Or did he offend Inaho? No one else seems to notice anything wrong, and before he can figure it out, Calm starts laughing.

“You won’t believe what she said about Inaho earlier! She said that Inaho likes-” He is stopped by a well-placed elbow to the side by Inko. 

“That’s not important, Calm! Yuki was obviously mistaken.” Now Slaine was really interested. What would Inaho like that Calm found so funny? And why was Inko so adamant about it being a mistake? He’s trying to find out the right way to press for more information when Inko hastily changes the subject. 

_Maybe I’ll ask Calm about it later…_

-

Inaho isn’t sure why the conversation got to him. He’s used to people disbelieving that he and Yuki are related. He’s heard all the variations of comments, saying how she is so normal, and happy, and polite, and funny, basically everything Inaho isn’t. It’s never really bothered him if other people like Yuki more than him. He doesn’t care if other people like him; he has other priorities. 

Still, hearing Slaine voice those same opinions that he’s heard so often bothered him. Inaho doesn’t make friends easily. He doesn’t know why the ones he has stuck around him for so long. But they knew him for a while before meeting Yuki, so they had already decided to be his friends by then. 

One the other hand, Slaine has only known him for a few days. And everyone seems to like him. He is very likeable. He could make friends with anyone he wanted to on the ship. Why would he choose Inaho when anyone else would be willing? Hearing him voice his thoughts about Yuki must have brought up this realization, and that’s why it upset him. 

Except Inaho didn’t usually care about making friends. If someone wanted to spend time with Yuki over him, he wouldn’t get upset. He doesn’t care that people think that he is cold and emotionless and prefer Yuki’s warmth to him. So why did he care about what Slaine thinks about him?

Then he realizes that he likes spending time with Slaine. He likes arguing with him. He likes planning with him. He likes bantering with him. He likes teaching him and learning from him. He likes the way Slaine calls him out on his actions. He likes Slaine’s intelligence and skills. He likes talking to Slaine.

_I like having him around._

The realization shocks Inaho. He has never really actively wanted to be around someone. The others just clung on until he didn’t want to get rid of them anymore (that’s not to say he didn’t care about them, because he does). But it’s different with Slaine. 

He notices that he has barely even touched his tablet all day. He had never even thought of it while he was with Slaine, which was unusual. Between that and the shower incident, it was the least he had used it since he got it. 

He couldn’t help it if Slaine didn’t like his personality. He couldn’t change that. He couldn’t help if Slaine would rather be friends with Yuki, or Inko, or Calm, or Nina and only have minimal interaction with Inaho. Therefore, the realization didn’t really do him any good, so he stops thinking about it for now.

He was lost in thought and missed the rest of the group’s conversation. He was brought back by Inko’s annoyed “Inaho! Inaho!”

He looks at her. “I was just thinking-” 

“Yes, we could tell by the way you were actively ignoring all of us!” She snaps, then sighs. “We were saying that we wanted to play a game of cards. Do you want to play?”

Usually when they play cards he just continues his research on his tablet. He already missed most of their previous conversation though (and he’s pretty sure he heard his name mentioned once or twice, so he wants to pay attention), and after the stressful day he knows they could all use something relaxing to distract them.

So to everyone’s surprise, he answers “Sure.”

“You never want to play cards.” Inko mutters suspiciously, eyes narrowed, but Nina drags her away to get the cards before she can press. 

“So, Slaine, how are the martian girls?” Calm asks with a grin once Nina and Inko are out of earshot.

Slaine turns red. “Er… what?”

“I mean are they cute? I wouldn’t really mind if a girl was a martian, as long as she’s a solid 9.”

“Uh… I guess they’re like terran girls? I didn’t meet many girls on mars…” Slaine wasn’t about to tell them that the girls he had met treated him like every other martian treated terrans. Princess Asseylum was the only decent girl he met, and his only friend from mars. 

“If we make peace with Vers, that’s like twice the number of available girls! And the martian girls would need someone to teach them about earth…” Calm gazes upwards as he daydreams about wowing martian girls with his knowledge of earth. 

Calm turns his gaze back to Slaine with a grin and raises his eyebrows. “You lived with the princess right? What was that like?”

Slaine turns red at Calm’s implicit suggestion. “I- we- I was just her teacher! I owe her my life, and would die for her, but she is a princess! We are just friends, and for that I consider myself lucky! I would never presume to-”

Calm raises his hands in a placating gesture. “Ok, ok, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to offend you!”

Slaine calms down. “It’s ok, I’m sorry. It’s just the idea is so…”

Calm laughs. “It’s a good thing you didn’t hear about what Yuki said about Inaho then.” Slaine is about to ask, half fearing the answer, but Inko and Nina choose that moment to come back in, laughing loudly. 

By now the mess hall is empty, just their group is left at one of the tables. Slaine is seated with Inaho to his left. Inko, Calm and Nina sit across them on the other side. 

Nina starts dealing the cards for poker, which is what they usually play. “Do you know how to play Texas Hold ‘em, Slaine?” 

Slaine nods. “Princess Asseylum wanted to learn Earth games, so I taught her.”

Calm runs behind the kitchen counter and grabs a bag of bottle caps. “We keep these to use as chips.” He explains at Slaine’s slightly confused face.

Calm passes out the chips as Nina shuffles the cards. She deals everyone their cards. Everyone puts a cap in and she deals the flop. Slaine studies everyone. He was at a distinct disadvantage because he had never played with them before, while they had played with each other many times. They probably were able to read each other much better than Slaine was. 

“I raise.” Inko tosses another cap into the middle pile. Slaine looks at her, but can’t tell anything. It’s probably too early for her to tell exactly how good her hand is anyway. Everyone calls, and Nina flips over the next card. 

Slaine looks at his hand. If the next card is a heart, he will have a flush. If it’s not, he won’t have anything. 

Inko raises again and everyone matches her, but when it’s Inaho’s turn, he raises again. Slaine studies him, but it’s impossible (as usual) to read anything on his face. Inko and calm call, but Nina folds with a sigh. Slaine decides to match even though he doesn’t really have anything yet.

Nina turns over the last card. It’s a nine of hearts. Slaine has a flush. He looks at everyone else. Inko’s eyebrows furrow a little, and Calm’s mouth gives a slight twitch. Inaho, though, is as expressionless as always.

Inko, Calm and Slaine check, but Inaho raises again. Inko hesitates a little before matching. Slaine is pretty sure she doesn’t have anything by now. Calm tosses a cap into the pile with obvious confidence. 

Slaine has no way of knowing if Inaho is bluffing or not. He doesn’t think the others have any idea either. So, he decides to take a risk and raises it. He feels Inaho glance over to him before he matches Slaine. Inko and Calm also match. 

They all turn their cards over. 

Inko has a pair of fives. But Slaine sees that she was just one card away from a straight from the very beginning. Her card she needed just never came. 

Calm has three of a kind. 

And Inaho has a full house. Inaho grabs all the chips from the center and pulls them to his pile.

“Man. Now I remember why we don’t play cards with you, Inaho.” Calm groans.

Nina takes the cards, reshuffles and deals. Inaho wins the next round too. In the third round everyone folds when Inaho keeps raising to pot, so Slaine never gets to see if he was bluffing or not. Inaho folds on the fourth round, and Slaine sees why when Calm woops as he sets down his four of a kind and takes the pot. 

_Inaho knew Calm had a good hand… How?_

Inaho wins the next round and everyone groans. By the time they have played 10 round, Inaho has folded four times, all when Nina, Inko or Calm had a good hand. Slaine himself hasn’t had a good hand since the first round. He thinks by now that he has the group kind of figured out though.

Calm acts overconfident when he has a mediocre hand, and turns more serious when he has a better one. Inko displays her attitude too much on her face. Nina can’t help but smile a little when she has a good hand.

_They are all really terrible poker players…_

He still had no idea about Inaho though.

_He has to have a tell, I just have to find it._

By the 11th round Slaine has gotten pretty good at predicting people’s bluffs. He is also dealt a decent hand – two sevens, and a seven on the table. 

As the rest of the cards are dealt (Slaine gets another seven), everyone but him and Inaho fold. Slaine has a slight advantage because Inaho hasn’t played with him enough to be able to read him like he does everyone else. Inaho can’t tell if Slaine is bluffing or not. But Slaine also doesn’t know if Inaho is bluffing.

They stare at each other. 

“I’m all in, Orange” Slaine finally says, pushing the rest of his caps to the center. 

Inaho’s eyes don’t leave Slaine’s face as he says “I’ll match you, Bat.” And pushes his chips to the center to join Slaine’s. 

They flip their cards over.

Everyone is silent as they look between the boys.

And then Slaine echoes everyone else’s groans. Inaho has a straight flush. Inaho pulls all of the chips towards himself.

“Well, that’s enough of that! We should know better by now than play poker with Inaho!” Inko declares. “Let’s play a different game.”

Slaine was a bit annoyed that he still hadn’t figured out Inaho’s tell, but he promises himself he will figure it out eventually.

“We can play Kemps” Nina suggests. No one knows how to play, so Nina explains the rules to them.

You are teamed up with another player, and your goal is to get four of a kind. Everyone is dealt four cards, and four cards are dealt on the table. There are no turns, anyone can swap any card in their hand for one on the table at any time. If no one wants any on the table, a four new cards are dealt. 

The hard part is that you have to yell “Kemps!” When your partner has four of a kind, but you can’t talk. Instead, teams come up with a secret signal to let their partner know that they have four of a kind. You can also yell “Stop kemps!” If you think that the other team has kemps. If you’re right, your team gets a point. If you’re wrong you lose a point. 

So, not only do you have to keep track of your own cards, but you also have to be aware of what everyone else is picking up, be looking for your teammates signal, and be watching for the opposite teams signal.

Nina agrees to be the dealer and pairs Inaho up with Slaine and Calm with Inko.

The teams go to separate corners of the room to decide on their signals.

“What about scratching our head?” Slaine suggests.

“Too easy to figure out. We need something that you can’t see unless you’re looking for it.”

“Hm… what about flaring our nose?”

“Inaho nods approvingly. “That’s hard enough to see even if you are looking for it. And you can do it repeatedly without someone noticing.” They agree and head back to the table. Slaine is now seated across from Inaho and next to Inko. 

Nina deals and the game begins. 

Slaine tries to monitor which cards everyone is picking up so he can guess if they are close to having four of a kind. At the same time he has to keep an eye on Inaho’s nose, and also Calm and Inko, for any signs. It’s a little overwhelming. 

Inaho seems to have gotten the hang of it fast. As soon as Slaine picks up his last six, he casually looks as Inaho and flares his nostrils. Inaho was already looking at him, aware that he probably had four of a kind, waiting for the confirmation. 

“Kemps.”

Inko and Calm groan. 

“I was so close! What did they even do as their signal?” Calm asks, looking between Slaine and Inaho.

“I don’t know, I didn’t see anything.” Inko replies, as Nina begins to reshuffle the cards. 

They play again, as soon as Calm reaches up to touch his ear, Slaine yells “Stop kemps!” He had seen Calm pick up at least three fives, so he assumed that was Calm and Inko’s signal.

By their frustrated noises, and glares at him, he was right.

“We need a new signal now!” Inko says, and drags Calm with her to the corner to converse.

They come back a few moments later and the game resumes. They play in concentrated silence for a few minutes before Inaho says “Stop Kemps.” Again. Inko and Calm stomp off to make a new signal.

The next round Slaine sees Inaho pick up yet another ten, and subtly glances at Inaho, seeing his nose flare.

“Kemps!”

They play a few more rounds, with Slaine and Inaho dominating, before Inko finally figures out their signal. She had opted to openly stare at Inaho that round instead of focusing on her own hand. 

Slaine grins. “I guess we have to go make a new signal, Inaho.” They get up to go to the corner, but Inko stops them.

“No, it’ll take us another ten rounds to figure it out! We’re switching teams!” She promptly puts herself in Slaine’s seat, taking Inaho as a partner. Slaine moves over to sit across from Calm. They get up to make their new signals.

“Uh… what about raising our finger…?” Calm suggests.

“That’s too easy. Inaho especially will get it immediately.” Slaine considers. “What about blinking twice, a little faster than usual?” Slaine blinks his eyes to demonstrate.

“I guess… It’s kind of hard to catch though…”

“That’s the point.” Slaine grins and they head back to the table. Inko and Inaho are already there, and Inko looks very pleased at being on Inaho’s team. 

_Well, I would be too. He’s the best player here._

The game starts off good. He is able to depict Calm’s double blinks and yell “Kemps!” Claiming the first point. 

The next round Inaho says “Kemps.” Tying up the game.

Then Slaine gets kemps. He is blinking subtlety at Calm, who is completely unaware. He is busy with his own cards. Slaine can’t try too hard to get his attention or it will become obvious to everyone. Before he can think of what to do, Inko yells “Kemps!” and Inaho lays down his four sixes. 

Slaine groans inwardly, and pays more attention to Inaho the next round. Slaine studies Inaho’s face throughout the game, so when Inaho barely tilts his head to the left, Slaine immediately yells “Stop kemps!” Before Inko can even open her mouth. She glares at him as she drags Inaho away to make a new signal.

Next game, Slaine picks up a fourth one, and blinks twice. However, it’s not Calm that responds but Inaho with “Stop kemps.”

Slaine and Calm sigh and make a new signal. Inaho is studying Slaine almost as much as Slaine is Inaho. After another round of Inaho picking up Slaine’s signal, Slaine decides to try something. 

He picks up a card, and slightly licks his lips.

“Stop kemps.”

Slaine laughs and turns over his cards. He only has three of a kind. Calm smiles brightly and gives Slaine a high five across the table.

“You used a fake signal.” Inaho says. And then he smiles. Slaine can’t look away, all he can do is laugh and smile back at Inaho. 

After that the game becomes much more intense. It is basically Inaho vs Slaine, with Calm and Inko struggling to keep up.

“Stop kemps.”

“Stop kemps!”

“Stop kemps.”

They are both so good at noticing the others signals. They also now have to avoid false signals, that both have begun throwing into the mix. The game has basically become a battle.

Slaine has looked at Inaho’s face so much he knows every little thing about it now. He knows the freckle next to Inaho’s ear. He knows the way Inaho’s hair falls. He knows he won’t ever be able to forget Inaho’s face. 

“Stop kemps.”

“Stop kemps!”

They are basically just playing each other, the first to see the other’s signal is the winner. 

“Stop kemps.”

“Stop kemps!”

Inko groans and throws her cards down. They have been at a stalemate for the last eight rounds. Neither Inaho nor Slaine can get the upper hand on the other. And Calm and Inko are completely out of their league. 

Slaine laughs. “Ok, ok. Good game, Inaho.” Inaho nods, expressionless. But Slaine has spent the last hour watching his face, so he can tell that Inaho had fully enjoyed himself during their game. Slaine feels lighter than he has since he got here.

Everyone agrees that it is time to call it a night. Inko and Nina say head off with a “We are never playing cards with you two again!” Calm, Inaho and Slaine start  
towards the shower. Halfway there, Calm realizes he forgot something in the workshop this morning and runs off frantically. It makes Slaine wonder just what Calm could have forgotten that made him so eager to get back. Then he decides he might be better off not knowing.

Slaine glances at Inaho out of his peripheral vision. “We made a good team.” He can’t keep the smile off of his face.

“Yes. We also make good enemies.” Inaho stops and looks at Slaine. “I wouldn’t want to go against you in battle.”

“W-what! What are you saying? Why would we ever be against each other…?”

“We almost were. No one knows what will happen in the future. I need to keep in mind the possibility of having to face you one day.”

“Inaho…” But Inaho is already walking away, leaving Slaine to stare at his retreating back in sadness and confusion. 

-

Inaho appreciated Slaine’s company. He was actually having fun playing cards, for once. Being on a team with Slaine only cemented the notion. Inaho was impressed with Slaine’s intelligence and quick learning. He couldn’t say why, but he also enjoyed studying Slaine’s face. Just from their card playing, Inaho had learned how Slaine’s face slightly twisted when he disappointed but trying to hide it. He learned how his lips twitched when he was secretly happy. He learned how his eyes crinkles when he laughs. He learned how his whole face lights up when he laughs. 

Inaho had never felt as free as when he made Slaine laugh. 

Then Inaho realized he was traveling into dangerous territory. Slaine had just tricked him. Slaine was beating him. Slaine was just as skilled as Inaho. And suddenly, Inaho realized Slaine was a formidable, intelligent, skillful opponent. 

If he was like this at playing cards, what was it like to be against him in battle? The boy who stalled out his own ship to dodge an attack… The boy who was ready to shoot Inaho if he thought he was using the princess…

Inaho couldn’t let himself become complacent just because he liked Slaine. He would always have to be prepared to possibly face Slaine in battle. And if that did happen, he now knew Slaine wouldn’t be easy to defeat. He would have to be ready.

But all Inaho can see is the way Slaine’s smile dropped off his face as Inaho stated this. The way he felt when he was the one to take away Slaine’s happiness. It didn’t change anything. It couldn’t.

-

Slaine stood in the shower and let the water run over him. He was replaying Inaho’s words over and over in his head.

Why would they ever be on opposite sides? Slaine hoped to god that it never happened, because he didn’t know if he would survive the encounter if Inaho decided to give it his all. Slaine isn’t sure he could survive it if the Deucalion became his enemy. He has only known the group for a few days, but they have some of the best days he’s had.

It makes him wonder if this is what his whole life could have been like if he hadn’t been taken to mars. He runs a hand over the scars on his chest.

_I could have had this. I could have been happy._

All he knew for sure was that he couldn’t lose this. He couldn’t lose the friends, the fun, the laughter. Even Inaho, with his annoying behaviors. Especially Inaho, with his intelligence, with his bluntness, with his plans, with his confusing actions, with his light smile. 

Slaine makes a vow right then. He won’t fight Inaho. Not seriously. Not ever. He would run. He would retreat. He would die. Whatever, as long as he didn’t have to fight against the boy whose face he knows almost as well as his own now. 

-

They both slept uneasy that night.

-

Count Cruhteo was angry. It had taken him much longer than planned to find Slaine. He hadn’t expected the terrans to be able to move so fast. They didn’t have aldnoah. He had to go back to his landing castle and do a much more extensive search. 

But finally, he found a ship on the ground out in the middle of nowhere. It had to be them. Though, how they had gotten the martian warship so far without aldnoah concerned him. Did they have a Count hostage? Had the drive always been active? Why was it on the ground now, then?

He had a lot of questions, and not a lot of answers. He knew he would need to proceed with caution. These terrans had proved time and time again that they could take on martian kataphakts and win. 

He had no doubt that we would be victorious of course. Filthy terran scum might be able to defeat incompetent fighters, but not him. 

He was ready to retrieve Slaine Troyard and make him tell all he knew. He would get the answers he wanted. 

He started the Tharsis’s descent from the sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inaho's logic with Rayet always bothered me. By the same logic he shouldn't have shot down Slaine >:( 
> 
> I hope everything didn't seem rushed. I thought the group would need an activity to do to get their mind of Rayet. They shouldn't focus on it too much, since everything turned out fine. 
> 
> I am taking liberties with the timeline from here. I am giving the ship a few days down time for Seylum to recover.
> 
> And finally a battle next chapter! 
> 
> Thanks for reading, and thanks everyone for your comments, they make my day! Sorry for any mistakes :)


	5. Chapter 5

Slaine jerks awake at a high pitched screech that resounds through the room and makes him feel like he’s going deaf. He jumps out of bed immediately, already wide awake. They are on a battleship in the middle of a war. There is only one thing that alarm can mean.

He runs after Inaho and Calm to the docking station. There are people scrambling around everywhere. They are getting in kataphakts, they are checking the systems, they are passing out orders. Calm rushes over to the other mechanics without a word, uncharacteristically serious. A brown suit is pushed into Slaine’s hands. He freezes for a moment, but then he hurries to the nearest corner and puts it on, trusting everyone is too busy to look at him. This is no time for self-consciousness.

People are running around the whole area, but Slaine manages to find Inaho talking to someone in charge of the kataphakts. Inaho stops and looks at Slaine. As they stare at each other, Slaine wonders if Inaho is thinking about the conversation they had last night. He opens his mouth to say something, but just then Princess Asseylum runs in.

She is still dressed in hospital clothes, as she is not yet been cleared for release. Slaine doesn’t know why she is here and has a moment of panic.

“Slaine! Inaho! I’m so glad I found you!” She turns towards Slaine. “Slaine, I want you to take this.” She holds out her hand and sees his pendant in it.

“No! Your Highness! I gave that to you for-”

“For good luck, yes.” She smiles. “And it had already brought me much luck. Thank you for letting me borrow it. You need more luck than I do now.” She pushes it into his hands. “Take it and be safe.”

All Slaine can do is nod as Eddelrittuo runs in and pulls the princess away. She waves back at them as she leaves. 

He clutches his fist around the pendant. He will come back. He puts it on around his neck.

“There no such thing as luck.” Inaho is looking at him. 

Slaine looks back for a moment, before pushing past him towards his sky carrier. “We have a battle to fight.”

Inaho follows after him and gets in his orange kataphakt. 

Slaine flips switches and checks everything. 

“Communication open. Bat, can you hear me?”

“Yes. Everything functional. Ready to go.”

The elevator raises, and they are outside, where a battle is already starting. Kats are stationed on the top of the ship, firing at the sky. 

“Mustang leader to Mustang platoon. Launch, and watch the skies!”

_Yuki...?_

“Rodger!”

_Inko…_

They’re all fighting… How can he protect them all? He had never really realized that of course his friends would be fighting too. He can’t watch them die. He is overwhelmed with helplessness, he feels it consuming him. This is the first time he’s had people he’s wanted to protect in battle.

A kataphakt is shot and explodes next to him. All he can do is stare at the destroyed kat, that had held a living person just a moment before. A person he might have seen in the mess hall. A person he might have bumped into. Despair eats a little deeper into him.

“Bat!” Inaho’s voice jolts him from his thoughts. He takes off to the sky. 

Two more kataphakts are destroyed below, and Slaine finally sees the enemy source. A white kataphakt. A martian kataphakt. The Tharsis. Count Cruhteo. His heart pounds in his chest. He sees another kat firing rapidly at the martian kataphakt coming towards it, but Count Cruhteo evades every shot before stabbing a blade into the other kat.

_He’s too fast… We don’t have enough manpower or skill to beat him… Was that Yuki? Or Inko? Everything is wrong. Everything is too fast._

At least Slaine can see Inaho is still alive, with his bright orange kataphakt, it is easy to spot him.

“Mustang leader to mustang platoon.” A sigh of relief escapes Slaine’s mouth, Yuki is alive. 

Inaho interrupts his sister. “Yuki, Inko, move to a tactical spot. Do not approach it yet. It’s too fast.”

“And what exactly are you going to do, Nao?!” Yuki demands back at him. “You can’t fight it alone!”

“I need to distract it. Inko, watch our backs. Yuki, tell the others to fall back and guard the ship. Make sure the noncombatants are safe.”

“Rodger!” Inko replies and moves off. Yuki growls in frustration, but moves as well too. 

They both put so much trust in Inaho…

Inaho tilts his kat’s head upwards and opens a communication channel just between them. “I need you, Bat.”

“Inaho! What are you doing? Your sister… Inko…”

“They’re fine. They are at a safe distance away, they will be able to evade him in time if he decides to go after them. Which he shouldn’t.”

Slaine steels himself. He makes a sound of determination, and lowers the hanger on his sky carrier. He flies towards Inaho who jumps on. 

“This again…” Slaine grumbles. 

Inaho ignores him. “Fly 36 degrees due south.” 

Slaine checks his bearings, and does as Inaho says, painfully aware that another terran kataphakt just exploded down below. 

_Did that soldier have a family?_

He is suddenly desperate to help. He pushes away all of his doubts and worries and helplessness and focuses on the task at hand. That's the only way to protect everyone. 

“What’s the plan, Orange?! Are we-” Inaho suddenly jumps off the sky carrier. Landing behind Count Cruhteo. “Hey! What are you doing?!” Slaine doesn’t know how anyone can stand being in battle with Inaho. He was reckless, and never informed his allies of his plans. Slaine groans in frustration, and watches Inaho.

Inaho fires off a rapid round of shots at the back of the Tharsis, maybe hoping to catch him unawares. Maybe judging just how fast it could move. Either way, the Tharsis easily avoids the shots and turns to face Inaho. 

Inaho barely avoids the round of shots fired towards him. He backs up, keeping a safe distance between himself and the Tharsis. 

_If he can keep a big enough gap, it will be easier to dodge… But his shots will never hit either…_

The two fire at each other again. This time a few shots reach their mark on Inaho’s kat. Nothing critical, but Slaine can see Inaho is outmatched with inferior equipment. 

Suddenly, the Tharsis shoots forward, and Inaho isn’t fast enough to get back. Slaine hears Inaho give a grunt of surprise. He barely manages to avoid the majority of the counts shots this time. He fires back, but misses.

_He’s too close… He can’t dodge…_

“Inaho!” 

“Nao!” 

Both Yuki and Inko start to move towards the battle.

“Stay back.” Inaho says sharply as he fires another round that misses, and they are startled into obeying. 

Slaine’s heart is pounding so fast, he is shaking a little. Inaho is trying to back up, but Count Cruhteo is too fast. Slaine sees the count preparing for another attack, one that will surely destroy Inaho.

Slaine desperately tries to think of a way to save Inaho. Inaho is too important. He can’t let Count Cruhteo kill him. He’s already taken so much from Slaine. He can’t take this too. 

His heart is pounding in his ears. 

_I can’t…_

His mouth is dry.

_I…_

He violently shakes his head. 

_I can’t freeze like I did in the showers!_

Slaine pulls out his pendant and clutches it until his hand hurts.

Slaine opens a new communication channel. Luckily the sky carrier was not wiped of all its memory from its time in the count’s service, so it was simple to gain access to Count Cruhteo’s channel.

“Are you looking for me?!” Slaine yells and fires at Count Cruhteo, who avoids it. The Tharsis hesitates for a second, giving Inaho time to get some distance between them. The Tharsis looks to the sky for the first time. 

Everyone is still.

“I should have known you would be fighting for the scum.” The disgust is evident in Count Cruhteo’s voice. “Though I don’t know why they would trust a traitor like you to fight with them.” He gives a sharp laugh. “I guess a dog always needs a master.”

“You must be upset that terrans are superior to you.” Slaine can practically hear the vicious smile drop off of the Count’s face. “I mean, they have destroyed every other Count who has faced them. Even with inferior technology.” Slaine’s purpose was successful. He now that the Count’s full attention. “It’s only a matter of time before we beat you, and you are disgraced like the others.”

That’s the last straw. Count Cruhteo launches his Tharsis into the sky towards Slaine. “I will never fall to terran scum!” Slaine maneuvers the sky carrier away from the rising Tharsis.

“Bat. To your left.” Slaine immediately swerves, avoiding shots that would have severely damaged him. He tries to circle his sky carrier around behind Count Cruhteo like Inaho did, but the Tharsis is too fast. 

“Up!” Slaine pulls the sky carrier into a sharp ascent. He sees the Tharsis strike where he was just flying. 

“Thanks.” Slaine pants, breathing heavy from the constant battle. He can’t afford to drop his concentration even for a second.

“Right.” Inaho could see everything from down below. He could predict what the count would do, and tell Slaine how to avoid it. Slaine would have to trust him completely. 

“Down!” Slaine barely manages to avoid this attack. His ship spins at the abrupt shift. He manages to steady it out and fire a shot at the Tharsis. For a moment he thinks it might hit, but Count Cruhteo dodges at the last second. 

Count Cruhteo laughs. “You think you can defeat me.”

Slaine zips to the side, and fires. He smiles grimly as a few shots actually connect. He hears Inko whoop in the channel.

Then his right wing is hit. Smoke bellows out of the damaged carrier. Slaine yells as he goes spiraling downward. He frantically flips switches and tries to pull up, but nothing is working. All he can see is the ground rushing up to meet him. His head slams forward, hitting something. Blackness swarms the edges of his vision.

“Slaine!” He hears Inko yell. He hears Count Cruhteo’s gleeful laughter as he falls. 

_This is it. At least it was a good way to die. Hopefully I damaged him enough for the others to finish him off. At least I died fighting with my friends, and for Princess Asseylum. It was a good way to die._

He closes his eyes, and smiles faintly. He braces for impact. 

“Bat! You’re not helping!” 

Slaine opens his eyes. He is slightly annoyed. Can’t Inaho see that he can’t help? That he is crashing to his death?

But then he realizes the plane has stopped spinning. He is still in a rapid nose dive to the ground, but his head is clearer now that it's not being tossed around. 

“Pull up, Bat!”

_What?_

Inaho’s orange kataphakt has risen under Slaine’s damaged wing. Inaho is trying to steady him out. But he needs Slaine to control the carrier. Slaine’s screens indicate the Tharsis closing in on them from behind. Inaho put himself back in a dangerous position to save Slaine.

“You idiot, Orange!”

Slaine grabs the stick and jerks it up. He flips switches and works the controls, frantically trying to land the ship and keep himself and Inaho alive. The ground keeps getting closer. Count Cruhteo keeps getting closer. 

“Just balance it out when we get close. I’ll pull out at the last minute, so compensate to the left.”

Shots fire from behind them. Slaine feels his carrier shake as he is hit.

Suddenly, his ship tilts to the left. Inaho was hit too. 

_We’re both going to die._

“Inaho. I’m-”

The sky carrier suddenly levels back out. The ground seems like it’s right in front of him. 

“Now!”

Slaine pulls hard to the left as Inaho leaves to try and land his damaged kataphakt.

Slaine hits the ground. Hard.

The ship crashes into the ground, jerking Slaine all around. 

He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to hold on as the carrier skids to a halt. 

He’s alive. Inaho’s alive.

For now, anyway.

Count Cruhteo is approaching fast from above. Slaine can’t fly anymore. Inaho’s kataphakt is heavily damaged. 

Count Cruhteo lands next to Slaine’s destroyed carrier. Slaine closes his eyes and prepares for the explosion. Maybe he can at least buy Inaho enough time to get away.

“Good, you survived. I have some questions I need answered.”

Slaine opens his eyes. Count Cruhteo isn’t going to kill him. Not yet. He’s just going to try to get him to betray his friends and the princess. 

_He should just kill me._

“What have you told them?! How did they get this martian ship here without aldnoah?!”

Slaine laughs bitterly. He can’t help it. Count Cruhteo doesn’t know that Princess Asseylum is alive. He didn’t know that they were harboring her. He was there purely to get Slaine. 

“Slaine, you can still have a place on Vers. You can come back to my landing castle. Your disobedience will be punished, of course, but you can still fight for the side of glory.”

Slaine is silent, pretending to consider it. The longer he stalls, the more time Inaho and the others have to get out of here. 

But Inaho hasn’t moved.

_What is he doing?!_

He has taken too long. Count Cruhteo is not a patient man. “Fine. I can get the information I need out of one of these terrans. Goodbye, Slaine.”

The Tharsis raises its gun and prepares to shoot. 

Shots explode off the back of it. 

Count Cruhteo turns to face Inaho’s broken kataphakt. 

Slaine is struggling with his harness.

He needs to do something. Anything.

He’s yanking it hard, but it won’t loosen. 

He begins to struggle fanatically.

“Count Cruhteo,” Slaine goes still. Inaho isn’t talking to Slaine. He had somehow gained access to Slaine’s communication channel with the count. “You want to know how the Deucalion got here without aldnoah.” 

Slaine can hear Inaho’s breathing over their own channel. It’s not loud, but in the silence of Slaine’s broken carrier, it fills the cockpit. 

Slaine struggles again, but he is stuck. He doesn’t know what he would do if he got free, anyway. Rush the Tharsis on foot? If it would buy Inaho more time…

But it’s useless. All he can do is focus on Inaho’s breathing. It amazes Slaine that it’s so steady, in the midst of a battle, when he is facing an opponent who will likely destroy him.

Inaho continues talking to the count. “We didn’t do it without aldnoah.”

_What is Inaho saying?!_

“What?! How did you terrans manage to-”

“We have the princess.”

Slaine tenses. Why would Inaho tell him that?! Why is his breathing so steady, when Slaine’s is coming out in ragged breaths?!

“What are you saying?! Princess Asseylum is dead,” Count Cruhteo sounds angry, but Slaine can pick up the uncertainty in his voice. 

“No, she’s alive. She survived the assassination attempt on her life, planned by martians.”

“You dare accuse-”

“She’s the only one who could have activated the aldnoah drive.” 

Count Cruhteo falls silent at this. “If she’s really alive, then…” he is speaking much quieter now.

“We are using her. Once she ceases being useful we will dispose of her.”

Slaine can’t move. Inaho is lying… Slaine knows he must be lying. He’s lying to Count Cruhteo for some reason… He has to be. Or all of this was for nothing…

Everyone is silent.

It’s a lie…

Slaine's heart is pounding in his ears. Slaine listens to the rhythm of Inaho’s breathing.

It has become less steady. Faster.

It’s barely noticeable, but Slaine could tell. He had been listening to the same steady breaths this whole conversation. 

Why would his breathing change now?

Because it’s a lie.

Slaine can’t help but let out a small laugh. 

_How can I laugh in a situation like this?_

Because he had figured out Inaho’s tell. 

Inaho was bluffing. 

When Inaho lied, his heart rate increased, leading to heavier, fast breathing.

It would never have been noticeable in a normal setting. 

_I can’t believe I figured it out when we’re about to die._

_At least I did figure it out._

Then Count Cruhteo shatters the silence. “How dare you! How dare you filthy terrans force her to help you! How dare you pretend she was dead!” The Tharsis begins to move towards Inaho. “I won’t let you use her! You will die!”

Count Cruhteo raises his gun.

Inaho thrusts his Kataphakt into the sky. 

Count Cruhteo follows, much faster than Inaho.

Slaine can’t tear his eyes away from the scene, helpless to do anything. He can’t stop listening to Inaho’s once more steady breathing.

Inaho fires shots.

Count Cruhteo easily avoids all of them.

He points the gun at Inaho.

_Why isn’t Inaho moving?!_

Count Cruhteo aims the gun, ready to fire.

Slaine closes his eyes, waiting for the sound of a firing gun and exploding Kataphakt. He knows he will die soon after. He hopes that at least Yuki and Inko will escape. Maybe they can get back to the ship and the others can escape. They can take Princess Asseylum to the UFE and get protection. Yes, that is what they will do. It has to be.

But the explosion never comes. Slaine opens his eyes.

Instead, an electrical pulse overtakes the Tharsis.

Slaine can’t hear the energy crackle, but he could see it.

The Tharsis shudders and stops.

It begins free falling.

“What?!” Count Cruhteo thunders. Slaine can hear him pounding on buttons and flipping switches.

Inaho is quick to get under the falling Tharsis, doing a similar technique as he did with Slaine.

He is going to stop it from crashing and exploding… Does he want to take Count Cruhteo hostage?

Count Cruhteo apparently had the same train of thought, because he fires his ejection pod, and shoots into the sky. Slaine thinks Inaho is going to go after him or shoot him down, but Inaho just continues trying to slow the Tharsis’ descent. 

_What just happened?_

Slaine has no idea. Did the Tharsis malfunction?

Inaho and the Tharsis slam into the ground, no doubt severely damaging both machines.

“Inaho!” Inko’s and Yuki’s kataphakts are running over here now that the battle is over. 

_It’s over? We won?_

“I’m fine.” 

Slaine lets out a sigh of relief. Everyone was ok. It was over.

-

It took everyone a while to get the damaged vehicles back the ship. Inaho’s kataphakt had taken most of the damage, but it was fixable. Slaine’s sky carrier and the Tharsis were in better shape, but would still require weeks of repairs.

They were gathered in the captain’s office again. It reminds Slaine of his first time here. Except this time he is freshly showered. Except this time he doesn’t feel like his like is turning upside down. Except this time he is surrounded by friends. Yuki and Inko stand to his left, and Inaho is to his right. He feels safe.

“So, Kaizuka Junior-”

“Inaho.”

She just sighs at Inaho’s interruption. 

“Are you going to tell us what exactly happened out there?”

“I assume you witnessed the battle, so I don’t need to relay everything to you.”

The captain waves her hand in agreement and as a gesture for him to continue.

“I knew that Count Cruhteo was likely to come after us, as Slaine informed me. Slaine also told he that the Count’s kataphakt was equipped with predictive analytics.”

Slaine stiffens at the mention of his name. The captain turns her eyes towards him, narrowing slightly, then back to Inaho. “And you didn’t think to inform me of this?”

“It was unnecessary. More people knowing would not help. In fact, the more that knew-”

She sighs again. “Ok. Ok. Just tell me what happened.”

“His kataphakt could see a few seconds into the future.”

“So that why he could dodge all of our attacks…” Yuki mutters.

“Yes. So the most efficient way to hit him was to distract him. That way he couldn’t effectively use the analytics.”

“But you only hit him once!” Inko exclaims, confused.

“Yes. I knew that a trained soldier was not likely to be easily distracted.”

Everyone looks at Inaho expectantly. Not even Slaine can figure out where this was going.

“So I loaded my gun with devices that sound and hit like regular bullets. But upon impact, they attach themselves to the target. They have a delay timer of five minutes so that the opponent cannot predict their affect and counter it. Once the timer goes off, they send an electromagnetic pulse through the kataphakt, disrupting the system. Effectively disabling it.”

They are all staring at Inaho, mouths slightly open. Slaine is struck again by how smart Inaho really is. That one round of shots off its back when the count was distracted with Slaine... But then why did Inaho antagonize Count Cruhteo afterwards? He could have retreated and let the devices do their work instead of almost dying. Why lie to him about using Asseylum? 

“You planned all of that…what did you do to distract him?” Inko is in awe.

“Slaine and I took turns attacking in different ways. It was bound to overwhelm him. And I just needed a sufficient amount of shots to hit.”

Slaine frowns. Why isn’t Inaho telling them about the conversations? Does he not want them to know? Why didn’t Inaho tell him about the plan? 

Now Slaine is angry. He hisses at Inaho. “You didn’t know if-”

Inaho silences him with a look. No one else seems to have heard Slaine.

“My baby brother’s a hero!” Yuki gushes, pulling Inaho into a hug. 

The captain sighs again, rubbing her temples. “Well, the martian escaped, so I need to decide what to do. Good job everyone. Dismissed.” 

Slaine follows everyone out. He’s angry at Inaho. He’s unbelievably glad Inaho is alive. He’s angry at himself. He still doesn’t fully understand what happened.  
But he can’t ask Inaho now. He silently fumes all the way to the mess hall.

It’s late by now. Slaine feels like the rest of day passed in a blur of questions and cleanup.

“Slaine and I have something to do.” Inaho says, as the reach the door, and walks the other direction.

The others looks questioningly at Slaine, who just shrugs. He has no idea what Inaho and he have to do. 

He follows after Inaho. Since the others can no longer see him, he now openly scowls as they walk. He is still mad at Inaho, and wants answers. But he also wants to know where they are going, so he doesn’t say anything yet.

Their footsteps echo down the silent hallway. Inaho doesn’t seem like he is going to talk to Slaine anytime soon, so Slaine scowls harder. 

Inaho doesn’t seem to notice. Or doesn’t seem to care. Either way, it’s hurting Slaine’s face to keep the scowl, so he settles for glaring at Inaho as they walk. 

Inaho also ignores this. Slaine wants to scream. Does nothing get to him? Why does he get Slaine worked up so easily?

He glares at Inaho’s infuriating blank face. His stupid uniform jacket, with its stupid tie, always perfectly tied. His stupid eyebrows, never giving away any emotion. His stupid brown hair and the stupid way it falls around his stupid face. His stupid red eyes. Red eyes that Slaine remembers lighting up with a smile directed at him. His stupid mouth. Lips that flicked upwards and made him seems like a different person. Lips that-

Slaine realizes that somewhere along the way he has lost his glare. He is now just openly staring at Inaho, who is now staring back. They hold each other’s gaze. Half formed thoughts are buzzing in Slaine’s head. He tries to grab a hold of one, but it slips away. The thump, thump, thump of their footsteps, the emptiness of the hallway, the flicker of something in Inaho’s eyes, Inaho’s unwavering gaze as they come to a stop. It’s all doing something to Slaine. He needs to say something. He doesn’t know what will come out, but he needs to say something. It’s pressing inside of him, he can feel it. He opens his mouth to say something.

Then Inaho rips his eyes from Slaine’s and the something shudders and breaks.

“We’re here.”

Slaine turns his face away, trying to hide the redness of his face. 

_What just happened?_

He puts his scowl and glare back on. But he knows it’s too little, too late. He already ruined his angry, intimidating, façade by staring at Inaho like an idiot. And it’s not like Inaho cared anyway. Oh well, he scowls anyway. And Inaho ignores it anyway.

“And where exactly is here?” Slaine tries to put as much disdain and annoyance as he can into his voice, but he’s sure that Inaho can hear the underlying curiosity. He curses himself for not being able to hide his emotions as well as Inaho. 

Inaho doesn’t answer. 

He opens the door.

-

Count Cruhteo is back in his landing castle. He is pacing, thinking. Luckily, he was able to call for assistance and get picked up and carried back in a sky carrier. Why the terran soldier let him escape was beyond him. He probably shouldn't put too much thought into it. He was a terran, after all. He was probably an idiot like the rest of them. Slaine must have told them about the Tharsis's skills. That's why they knew how to counter it. 

He fumed a bit at all the knowledge that the traitor had probably told them. He also fumed over the loss of his Tharsis. But that was replaceable. And Slaine was disposable. Now that he knew their location and how to fight, he would not lose a second time. They had cheated this time. It was unfair. He would kill Slaine. And all the other terrans. That required no consideration.

However, the part about Princess Asseylum being alive needed deep consideration. Could the boy have been lying? Count Cruhteo would have said so, if not for the fact that the martian battleship was so far away from Tanegashima. But why would the terran tell him? Then why was the ship not operating? Did they harm her? Did she refuse to continue helping them?

_"Once she ceases being useful we will dispose of her."_

Count Cruhteo growled. If she refused to continue being used, would they kill her? That's what the boy had said. And he knew the terrans were capable of such evil.

"I swore loyalty to her Highness." He declared to himself.

The boy said that martians had planned the assassination attempt on Princess Asseylum's life. Terran's were filthy liars. He doubted this was true, it was just a terran trying to get martians to turn on themselves. But the theory held some validity. He couldn't dismiss it.

Either way, the princess was alive. There was no reason for this war. He needed to get her out of terran hands.

He opened his video communication to the control room, his face twisted in anger.. "Put me through to United Earth Headquarters! Offer a cease-fire and request their assistance in locating the princess! We will identify those who made a mockery of the Orbital Knights-" Be it terrans or martians. "-And punish them!" 

He watched as they started to comply, but then began to panic.

"Milord Cruhteo! An object is approaching from orbit!" A man gasped.

"What? Another meteor bombardment?" Cruhteo asked, annoyed it would happen now of all times.

"No, Milord. Given it's rate of deceleration, it is far less dense! It is adjusting its landing trajectory. Its estimated landing point is...this landing castle!"

Count Cruhteo didn't even have time to process those implications before something huge crashed into the landing castle, destroying his room.

He shakily stood up in the wreckage of his room. Everything was destroyed. He was lucky to be alive.

He looked up and his heart stopped.

"That's...the Dioscuria! Count Saazbuam...?"

He couldn't move as he saw the kataphakt raise its fist and crush part of his landing castle.

"I see...The mastermind of the assassination plot was..." The terran soldier wasn't lying. Cruhteo had to tell someone!

He saw the Dioscuria draw its bright blue blade. It came rushing down towards him, and everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that the battle was alright! It was my first time trying to write something like that.
> 
> Hopefully, there will be some fun stuff happening next chapter! I'm excited to write it :)
> 
> Thanks always for reading and for all the comments!


	6. Chapter 6

Inaho had everything planned out methodologically, like usual. After Slaine had told him about Count Cruhteo and the Tharsis’s ability, he researched and planned. The electromagnetic bullets were relatively simple to produce. There was a lot of information about them on his tablet. Prototypes had been developed for use in war.

However, after testing, it was decided they were not advantageous in battle. For one thing, a sufficient amount of shots had to hit in a crucial area on the enemy kataphakt. An arm would not do. Also, they were much less effective at doing pure damage than the standard armor piercing rounds. So, loading a gun with them was a risk. If you couldn’t get a good hit, you didn’t have powerful enough bullets to destroy the enemy, and you were likely dead.

Also, there was a natural delay with the bullets due to the nature of the electric current. This gave the enemy time to escape, counter attack, or if they figured out what they had been hit with, neutralize the effect. That left you vulnerable with less than effective bullets. 

In multi-opponent battles, using them often was more harmful than not. In one-on-one battles, they were still a risky chance. And war was already risky enough. Therefore, it was decided that they would not be used in battle. 

But Inaho had figured that they would give him a distinct advantage against Count Cruhteo. Since they were not used in battle, Count Cruhteo would not think to check for signs of the devices when hit, and wouldn’t neutralize them. Inaho could lengthen the natural delay, so that the Tharsis could not use its predictive analytics to detect them. He was also confident that he could get at least one good shot on the Tharsis, especially if Slaine was distracting him. 

Everything was researched, planned and should have worked without a hitch. Except he didn’t take one thing into account.

Slaine.

He had anticipated that Slaine would try to communicate with Count Cruhteo. He had anticipated that Count Cruhteo would go after Slaine. He could tell there was something bad between them from Slaine’s stories. Something Slaine wanted to hide. He felt this was confirmed by the conversation he heard between the two during the battle.

What he hadn’t anticipated was how desperately he needed to save Slaine when he was in trouble, how guilty he felt for using Slaine’s past in battle, how he instantly regretted using Slaine as a distraction.

He planned to, and could have, shot Count Cruhteo when he was battling Slaine in the sky. But Slaine couldn’t dodge the attacks fast enough. Not without Inaho. And it took all of Inaho’s concentration to tell Slaine where the count’s next attack would land, and which way Slaine needed to move. Inaho was confused and frustrated. 

Why did he take the emotional option over the logical one? 

He could have easily gotten his shot on Count Cruhteo when Slaine’s wing was hit. The Count was wide open and distracted. He could have disabled the Tharsis, and take almost no damage to his kataphakt, or himself. It was the safe, smart option. 

But Slaine would have crashed. 

It was possible that Slaine might have survived the crash. Or he could have died. He could have been paralyzed. 

Inaho wasn’t one to let emotions dictate his actions. Especially not in battle, where everything was at stake. But somehow, he felt that he had to risk everything for Slaine.

He rescued Slaine. Despite the danger to himself. Despite the fact that he might not get another shot. 

And so his carefully thought out plan went off course.

And then he finally saw his shot. A shot that he wouldn’t have to sacrifice Slaine to get. 

But he still had five minutes before the electromagnetic pulse. Five minutes where Count Cruhteo could kill Slaine. 

So when Count Cruhteo was preparing to kill Slaine, Inaho was hastily tapping in to the Tharis’s communication channel. 

He said the only thing he thought could sufficiently divert Count Cruhteo’s attention from Slaine. That Princess Asseylum was alive.

This was not part of his plan.

It was not his intention to give a martian crucial information (though, he devised a new plan around that). It was not his intention to damage his kataphakt almost to the point of no return. 

It was pure luck that it all worked out in the end. And Inaho did not believe in luck.

Slaine. 

Why Slaine? Because he knew Slaine would be useful in the future?

No, it wasn’t that.

Because Slaine was his friend. 

When did he start considering Slaine his friend? When had he started caring about Slaine?

He asked himself all day why he would throw his logical plan to the wind, all for a chance to save Slaine. 

Even if Slaine was his friend, and he wanted to protect him, why did Slaine make Inaho so reckless, so emotional, in battle?

He didn’t know.

He watched Slaine during the meeting with the captain. 

He watched Slaine as he walked with him.

Inaho was fascinated with the range of emotions that showed on Slaine’s face. Did he realize he was so expressive? 

Slaine’s angry hiss to him in the captain’s office, with drawn eyebrows and outraged eyes. 

Slaine’s sulking on the way to the mess hall, mouth slightly pouty, eyes still angry.

Slaine’s open scowl at Inaho once they are alone, eyebrows furrowed, mouth frowning in an obvious way.

Slaine’s angry glare. 

Slaine’s heated stare.

Slaine’s blue-green eyes.

Slaine was so animated and warm and easy to read. Inaho knew he himself was so cold and closed off and analytical.

He has to rip his eyes from Slaine’s. 

He knows Slaine has questions (Inaho has questions too; though, not about the battle and not ones he’ll voice).

He’ll have to find the answers to those questions himself.

So he decides to kill two birds with one stone. Slaine needs answers. Inaho needs answers. Slaine’s answers are in Inaho’s mind, and Inaho’s answers are in Slaine’s face. 

So when he opens the door, he carefully watches Slaine’s face out of the corner of his eye. 

Slaine squints a little, at the sudden change in light. And then the rest of his anger dissolves into a huge smile. His eyes widen slightly, and he looks to Inaho with a smile, forgetting he is supposed to be angry.

Inaho doesn’t even try to stop from smiling back. He feels a lightness in his chest.

“It’s almost sunset, so I thought you might like to watch it. You must have not been outside when not fighting in a while,” Inaho can’t make his eyes move from Slaine’s profile, which is now intently studying the sky.

“No, I haven’t,” Slaine takes a deep breath. “I don’t know the last time I breathed fresh air.”

Inaho sits down near the edge of the ship, and Slaine follows suit. They sit in comfortable silence, waiting for the sun to set. 

Finally, Slaine hesitantly looks towards Inaho. “Why didn’t you tell the captain and the others about the conversation with Count Cruhteo?” His anger seems to be gone for the moment, tempered by the beautiful sight.

“Because they didn’t need to know.”

Slaine sighs. Inaho notices the way his cheeks puff up before slowly letting out the air. “Why did you tell Count Cruhteo about Princess Asseylum? And why did you lie about using Princess Asseylum?”

“I had to keep him busy for five minutes once my shots hit. It was the safest way. And why do you think I was lying? I could be planning on using Seylum and then disposing of her.”

Inaho sees Slaine hesitate.

_Is he considering what I just said? Does he still think I am using the princess?_

But Slaine slowly shakes his head. “No, I don’t think you would do that.”

“I see,” Inaho is slightly pleased that Slaine trusts him, though his face would never show it. “Well, I hadn’t planned on giving Count Cruhteo information on Seylum’s status. It was a dangerous move. So I decided I would try to get information in return.”

Inaho sees the moment when it all clicks in Slaine’s head. “You were trying to see if he was part of the assassination or not!” 

“Yes. We didn’t know for sure, and I wanted to know what side his information would go to. Maybe we would gain a potential ally.”

“From the way he responded… he didn’t know about the Princess being alive…”

“That’s what I gathered as well. I don’t think he was part of the assassination attempt on Seylum’s life.”

Slaine scoffs to himself. “Well, that doesn’t mean he’s an ally. He would never align himself with terrans.” 

“I figured that as well. But at least the information on Seylum might be safer with him.”

“…I guess… It would have been safer if you hadn’t let him escape,” Slaine mutters.

“I considered it. But I calculated that the advantage of having the Tharsis was greater than having the count.”

“What? Why?”

“Because you need a martian kataphakt to train in.”

“W-what!” Slaine’s eyes are wide with shock.

“You are learning fast with the simulator, but you would be of much more use with technology you have spent your life training with.”

“You want me to use Count Cruhteo’s kataphakt?!”

“Yes.”

Slaine goes silent. He seems to be lost in thought. “You shouldn’t have saved me. You could have gotten your shot sooner and safer if you hadn’t.”

Inaho is a little perturbed that Slaine’s thoughts so closely echoed his own. Except Inaho is fully convinced he needed to save Slaine above all else. 

Slaine continues. “It was my fault that he even attacked us. He didn’t know that Princess Asseylum was alive. He was here for me. People died because of me.”  
Inaho can see Slaine’s eyes filling up with tears. His chest feels tight at the sight.

“This is war. People always die.” Inaho would have stopped there if he was talking to anyone else. But he knew that wouldn’t take the tears from Slaine’s eyes, and somehow that felt important. “But more would have died if you weren’t here. He, or someone else, would have come to investigate the aldnoah ship eventually.” Inaho wasn’t lying to comfort Slaine. It was true. It was just more than he would have usually said; he wouldn’t waste the time. But he didn’t feel like he was wasting time with Slaine.

Slaine turns his head away and is silent. Inaho doesn’t say anything either. 

Slaine finally looks back at Inaho. “Well, what about your battle plans? It seems like those are something everyone should know! Especially if they’re fighting with you!” Slaine’s anger is slowly making its way back. 

“I didn’t want them to try and interfere. The plan relied on Count Cruhteo not having any awareness of it.” 

“You could have at least told me!” 

Inaho is quiet. He doesn’t want to say that he hadn’t fully trusted Slaine at that point in time. He believed Slaine might have turned on him eventually.

Apparently Slaine figures out what his silence means anyway, though. “You didn’t trust me. It’s like you said after cards.” Slaine abruptly stands. “Fight me.”

Inaho looks up at him. “What?”

“Fight me,” he repeats. “I know you’re skilled at hand to hand combat by the way you disarmed Rayet. Fight me.”

Inaho can think of four reasons not to. 

It’s like Slaine read his mind. “It will be good practice and stress releif. And we can judge each other’s skills.” They’re all valid reasons.

“Fine.”

Inaho stands up and faces Slaine. A slight breeze blows through their hair. And they start.

Slaine is good. Inaho had expected it from a martian soldier, but heis still surprised at how hard it is for him to counter attack.

After just a couple minutes Inaho is already sweating, despite the breeze. At least Slaine is breathing heavily as well.

Inaho deflects another one of Slaine’s attacks. “You’re pretty good, Orange.” Slaine pants.

“Not as good as you, Bat,” Inaho replies, truthfully.

Slaine grins at that, and successfully pulls Inaho into an arm lock behind his back. Inaho manages to twist out of it, but the fight was getting more difficult. He was able to block and counter attack a few more times, but then it was over.

Slaine had Inaho pinned to the ground with a similar move Inaho had used on Rayet.

“Good fight,” Inaho says, moving to get up.

Slaine shifts, allowing Inaho to face forward, but didn’t move to let him up. Slaine leans over Inaho, pinning his arms to his sides. He looks up at Slaine, blond hair blowing in the wind, triumphant smile on his face.

“I’m not letting you up, Orange.”

“Why?”

The smile leaves Slaine’s face. “Not until you decide to trust me.”

He could feel Slaine’s ragged breathe on his face. He could feel Slaine’s hands on his wrist, gentle but firm. He could feel the heat from Slaine’s body against his. 

He was hyperaware of how close Slaine’s face was to his. He could see the drops of sweat on his face. He could see the blond waves shifting as Slaine moved. He could see Slaine’s face, slightly flushed from the fight. He could see blue eyes looking into his, full of determination.

Even though he should be calming down now that he was no longer exerting himself, he feels his heart start to beat faster.

“Why does it matter if I trust you?” He asks.

“Because!” Slaine was getting frustrated. Slaine pins his arms a little tighter. Inaho wonders if Slaine could feel his rapid pulse from his grip on Inaho’s wrists. “We’re going to be fighting together, so we have to trust each other! I can’t help you if I don’t know the plan! I know you think that I might betray you, but I know you are good people and wouldn’t use her Highness! Why would I risk my life fighting today for someone I was willing to betray?” Slaine turned his head away and mutters. “Besides, you are all my friends. If you were using the princess, I would just find a way to take her and escape. I couldn’t fight you.”

Inaho was captivated by the range of emotions Slaine’s face had displayed. Anger, resolve, embarrassment. 

Slaine whips his head back to Inaho, anger flashing in his eyes. “Are you ignoring me again?!”

“No. I told you I wouldn’t ignore you anymore,” He says, and feels Slaine’s breathe across his face as Slaine sighs. Inaho wasn’t going to tell Slaine that he had already decided to trust him during the battle. He wasn’t going to tell Slaine that somewhere along the way he had realized that he could never fight Slaine. He wasn’t going to tell Slaine that he would rather let Slaine escape than hurt him. He definitely wasn’t going to tell Slaine how fast his heart was beating, how hot he felt, how he liked Slaine’s breathe on his face and Slaine’s weight on his body. “I will include you in future battle plans. And friends should trust each other, so I trust you.”

Slaine looks into Inaho’s eyes. Looking for confirmation? The only sound Inaho hears is Slaine’s now steady breathing, and his own heart beating rapidly in his ears. 

Slaine must have found what he was looking for, or, more likely, saw nothing and knew Inaho’s eyes weren’t going to give away his true feelings, because he sighs  
and releases Inaho’s arms.

Slaine stands up, and Inaho internally sighs at the loss of contact. He accepts Slaine’s outstretched hand and pulls himself up to stand next to Slaine. Slaine doesn’t immediately release his grip on Inaho’s hand, so they stand facing each other, still connected.

“I- Thank you, Inaho,” Slaine says, face red again and breaks their joined hands. 

Inaho offers a small smile in reply. “The sun is setting,” he informs Slaine.

The horizons turns a nice shade of pink and purple and Slaine is amazed. “I never realized how much I was missing living on mars without a sun,” he laughs. “No wonder Vers is so desperate for Earth. Mars is bleak and empty compared to Earth.” 

Inaho had seen the sun set countless times. It had stopped being a novelty for him. He could see how people considered it beautiful, but he had never really cared about beauty; it was irrelevant. He had understood in theory how people could be captivated by something like a sunset. But he would never waste time staring at something like that.

But, looking at Slaine now, he felt he would never tire of the sight. The thought that he was wasting time never crossed his mind, staring at Slaine, face lit by the fading sunlight. Theory had become reality.

_I see. I’m attracted to Slaine._

Inaho had never really felt attraction before; not like this. But he is certain that this is what he is feeling. Everything suddenly makes sense.

_It’s only natural. He is intelligent, interesting, good looking, I enjoy his company, and I have spent a lot of time around him recently. It’s only logical that I would be attracted to him. Attraction is just the release of the neurotransmitters adrenaline, serotonin, and dopamine into the brain. It will fade with time._

He had more important things to focus on, like the ongoing war. He didn’t have time to think about a temporary attraction to Slaine. So, he ignores the feeling in his chest when Slaine smiles at him. 

The sun has set, and Inaho knows Slaine would be content to stay out here all night and watch the stars. But they both need to eat, and rest after the hard battle. 

“Hey! What have I told you about walking away without telling me?” Slaine grumbles.

-

Slaine is hungrily picking at the food on his plate. 

“Have you had any training in the Tharsis?” Inaho asks.

Slaine had just shoved a giant bite of chicken in his mouth.

_Why is his timing always so bad?_

Slaine hurries to chew his chicken, and not choke, so that he can answer Inaho.

“No,” he says, and swallows his chicken. “Count Cruhteo would never have let anyone use his personal kataphakt. Especially not me.”

Inaho nods, and turns back to his food. 

Slaine was not looking forward to using the Tharsis. Yes, it would be nice working with familiar technology, and the terrans could definitely use the superior technology, but it felt wrong. He inwardly winces at the thought of what Count Cruhteo would have done if he knew Slaine was even thinking about using the Tharsis. He knew that he should revel in the cruel irony that not only did the terrans take Count Cruhteo’s kataphakt, but were giving it to the last person the count would ever want in it. 

But it just felt…disobedient. 

Slaine felt like he was constantly waiting for punishment for this offense. He is sure that Count Cruhteo is up in his landing castle right now, furious and planning a counter attack. If he sees Slaine in the Tharsis…

Slaine sighs. He knows he is going to have to train in the Tharsis, despite how his mind is rebelling against the thought. He is going to have to suck it up, and not let anyone know his discomfort. 

He sighs again. Today had taken a toll on him. The stress of battle, the constant fear that someone he cared about would get killed because of him, his close call with death, having to face Count Cruhteo again…

But after that was the sunset. It had been so long since he was outside. Really outside. It was the first time he could feel the breeze on his skin, and just watch the sky without being in battle. And somehow, being with Inaho had made it better. Yes, the idiot was annoying and difficult, but Slaine liked being around him. Even better was the fact that Inaho had decided to trust him. That Inaho had called him his friend. Slaine smiles a bit at the memory of how he got Inaho to admit it.

It was almost like the day was split in two. How could a day be so unbelievably horrible and wonderful at the same time? Probably only Inaho could manage to produce a day like that.

“You’re being strange,” Inaho says, snapping Slaine out of his thoughts.

“What! How?”

“You’re sighing and smiling at your chicken.”

Slaine’s face turns red. “W-well, at least I’m not the one in love with his eggs!”

Inaho frowns a little and looks to his plate full of scrambled eggs.

Slaine laughs at Inaho’s expression. “You get eggs every day, for every meal! Who eats eggs for dinner? I haven’t seen you eat anything else!”

Inaho is offended. “Eggs are an excellent source of protein. They also have many vitamins and other nutritional benefits. Plus, they can be made in many different forms, such as scrambled, omelet, over-easy-”

“Ok, ok! I get it,” Slaine laughs. “You have good reasons to be in love with eggs.”

Inaho glares at him. “I’m not the one who makes faces at my food.”

“That’s because you don’t make faces at anything!” Slaine can’t stop smiling. “I’m sure the way you look at eggs is your ‘in love’ face.”

Inaho is smiling at him a little now, and Slaine’s cheeks hurt. He feels like this is how this is how it is supposed to be. He feels happy and free and himself with Inaho.

“If you ate eggs for a week you would see their immense benefits, and deliciousness.” 

“Fine," Slaine says with a mischievous grin. "I’ll eat eggs for a week. But you have to eat something other than eggs for a week! We’ll see who can last longer.”

Inaho narrows his eyes, clearly displeased at the thought of an eggless week. But he grabs Slaine’s outstretched hand and shakes it, as they smile at each other.

“Now th-” Slain begins.

“Inaho! Slaine!” Princess Asseylum calls as she hurries over to them, Eddelrittuo following closely behind.

“Hello, Seylum,” Inaho says politely, but Slaine thinks he notices a bit of annoyance laced in his voice.

Slaine immediately stands up. “Princess Asseylum.”

She grabs his hands, and Slaine blushes at the contact. “I’m so glad you are ok!”

Slaine nods at her. Eddelrittuo is viciously glaring at him for his contact with the princess, and he notices Inaho has a slight frown on his face too. 

_Why? Is he upset I would be so casual with the princess? No, he calls her ‘Seylum’, after all  
. Then why?_

He suddenly remembers a previous conversation with Calm. 

_Does Inaho… like Princess Asseylum?_

It would make a weird kind of sense, considering Calm’s words the other day, and Inaho’s actions. For some reason the thought brings a sour feeling to Slaine’s stomach. It’s not that he feels Inaho doesn’t deserve Princess Asseylum. Inaho might be the only guy in the world he would grudgingly trust Princess Asseylum with if he had to. Definitely not with any martian royalty. It was probably the thought of such casualness between someone with no station and the princess. 

The thought didn’t quite land right, but Slaine tries to put it out of his mind for now. He doesn’t even know if he is right about Inaho liking Princess Asseylum. And he’s sure Inaho wouldn’t even express his feelings if he has any. And he’s sure Princess Asseylum doesn’t think of Inaho that way… does she?

The bad feeling intensifies. He can’t put it out of his mind. 

Princess Asseylum has released his hands and has gone to sit next to Inaho. She is talking away to him, and he is watching her, listening. Eddelrittuo is glaring at Inaho now from the seat next to Princess Asseylum.

_Are they sitting closer together than usual? Is Inaho’s expression happier than usual?_

Slaine feels like he is becoming paranoid. It shouldn’t matter if they like each other. He needs to know if it is true.

He goes to sit next to Inaho.

“Oh, Slaine! I was just telling Inaho about how nice Dr. Yagarai is! Did you know that there are earth plants that can heal different things?”

She begins to tell him about them, but he isn’t really listening. He’s trying to analyze the feeling still present in his stomach.

He looks at Inaho watching Princess Asseylum’s face.

Jealousy. 

It pops into his mind, and he knows it is right. He’s jealous. 

Jealous of what?

Jealous that the princess might like Inaho? 

It seemed like the most likely option. Princess Asseylum was his only friend on mars, and he would easily die for her. But that was because she was kind, and his princess. Not out of any misplaced feelings. And he hadn’t felt jealous at all when she told him that the doctor was teaching her about earth, even though that was his usefulness to the princess for years.

No, he is jealous that Inaho might like the princess.

He’s jealous at the thought of Inaho spending time with the princess and not him. At the thought of Princess Asseylum making Inaho smile, not him. At the thought of Inaho watching the sun set with Princess Asseylum, not him. At the thought of Inaho eating his eggs with Princess Asseylum, not him. Something clicks. The staring, the feelings he gets when he's with Inaho, the desire to protect him...

_Oh._

_Oh no._

_I like Inaho. Romantically._

_This is bad. So bad. How could I like that idiot?! He’s frustrating and annoying and expressionless!_

Slaine wants to scream. He can’t like Inaho. 

But he does.

He likes him.

_Stupid. I’m so stupid. I can’t like him. I’ll have to stop._

Slaine decides to do just that. He just got Inaho’s friendship, that’s enough. He ignores the feelings in his stomach and goes back to listening to Princess Asseylum.  
I don’t even care if he likes her.

“-Can’t believe Count Cruhteo would do that,” Slaine hears Princess Asseylum say sadly. He wipes his mind and pays attention. Princess Asseylum had always been sheltered, she never believed anything bad about another. She never thought that Count Cruhteo was less than kind. “But I’m glad you are alive.” She turns to Slaine, a bright smile on her face. “The pendant must have worked again Slaine. It kept you safe.”

It was like Princess Asseylum could only think of something serious for a few moments. She would easily go from saying something grim and to something lighthearted with a smile on her face. It was one of the reasons Slaine felt so strongly that he needed to protect her. She was too naïve. 

Slaine is worried Inaho is going to say something about the pendant’s supposed luck again. He can almost feel Inaho’s need to point out the logical. But luckily, a sharp glare from Slaine seems to make him hold his tongue. 

“Yes. Thank you, your Highness.” Slaine says.

Eddeulrittuo tugs on her sleeve. “Ah, yes. We better get back to Dr. Yagarai. Goodnight Inaho, Slaine!” She waves as they leave.

And then he’s alone with Inaho and his warring thoughts he’s trying to crush.

-

That night Inaho watches Slaine sleep again, tablet on his lap taking notes and mourning his loss of eggs for a week. Inaho knows that he needs to sleep too, but he can’t yet. This wasn’t about his unfortunate attraction to Slaine. He needed to observe Slaine’s sleep patterns to determine the cause of his uneasy sleep.

It could just be battle stress. But Inaho doubted it. Slaine was a soldier. He grew up with battle. Even if he didn’t like it, he should be used to it. And the way he fought showed that he was. It might be partly responsible for his sleep habits, but not for all of it.

It seems more psychological. His obvious discomfort, his slight tossing and turning. 

Is it from his life on mars? His time with Count Cruhteo? His worry for the princess? It could be all. It could be none. But Inaho wants to know. He decides that he will have to find out more about Slaine’s past. 

So, watching Slaine sleep is purely research based. It has nothing to do with the way Slaine’s blonde hair is ruffled by the pillow. Nothing to do with the way shifts his arm over his head. Nothing to do with the way that Inaho releases the tension he didn’t realize he was holding when Slaine’s face goes from distressed to serene. Just research.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't really what I had intended with this chapter, but the characters do what they want! Hope it turned out ok!
> 
> I am glad they finally realized there's something between them, even if it's not fully there yet. 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading and commenting! :)


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning Captain Magbaredge tells everyone that Princess Asseylum is well enough to reactivate the aldnoah drive. However, they are moving the ship to a safer, more enclosed location, but are not yet heading to the UFE headquarters. 

“We don’t know what that martian’s goal was in coming here. Or what information he gathered. Or who he is in allied with,” the captain rubs her temples. “There is too much we don’t know. What we do know is that we cannot risk drawing a martian army to the UFE. Especially not knowing the extent of their power. We will move and see if anyone follows. We will draw them out and discern their plans first,” She says to the group gathered in her office.

Slaine wholeheartedly agrees with her plan. He knows Count Cruhteo was looking for him, but now he knew Princess Asseylum was alive. Who knew what he’d do with that information. He didn’t want anyone else getting hurt because of him. He was safer away from the main headquarters, where there were many more lives at stake. 

“Any comments?” she asks everyone, but looks at Inaho. 

“No.”

She looks relieved at this easy answer. “Ok then. Dismissed.”

Inko yawns on their way to the mess hall. “Why did she have to wake us up so early just to tell us that?”

Nina nudges Inko with her shoulder. “It was important. Besides, that means I’m going to have to start flying again. I wonder where we are going!” 

“Hopefully somewhere with something to do,” Calm adds, hands behind his head. “This place has been pretty boring lately.”

“We just had a battle yesterday!” Inko snaps.

“You guys did, not me. I was talking about something fun anyway! And not like cards. It’s no fun when you can’t win,” he grumbles. 

“I guess it would be nice to have something fun to do…” Nina says thoughtfully. They had reached the mess hall by now, and everyone was eager to begin breakfast.

“Maybe we can-” Inko breaks off as she looks at Inaho’s plate. “-Inaho! Are you eating something other than eggs?!”

“Yes.”

“Why?!”

“No reason.”

Slaine smirks as he fills his plate up with scrambled eggs. Inko notices and narrows her eyes suspiciously at him. “What are you two up to?” she asks as they are all seated, looking from Inaho’s eggless plate to his very eggy one.

“Nothing.”

Inaho is eating his food, but Slaine can’t discern any out of the place expressions on his face. He eats his own eggs, noting that they are pretty good. Not good enough to eat every day, but good.

“Ugh, whatever, weirdos!” Inko says. “Anyway, as I was saying, we should throw a party!” she finishes excitedly.

“Inko that’s a great idea!” Nina hugs her from the side. “We could have games and food and decorations and dancing!”

“I’m in!” Calm says, smile on his face.

Slaine glances over to Inaho, whose face is buried in his tablet. He can’t help but notice the way Inaho’s hair falls over his eye as he tilts his head forward to lead. 

_Stop._

“It sounds fun.” Slaine says, trying to put some life in his voice. To be truthful, he’s not much excited for something that Inaho obviously won’t be interested in. Everything seems so much brighter when Inaho gives it his attention. He likes spending time with the others, but they don’t make him feel alive the way Inaho does.   
Which is a good thing. I should be glad Inaho won’t be interested, so it won’t fuel this stupid crush.

“Inaho?” Inko asks.

Inaho just shrugs, which confirms to Slaine that he’ll just be on his tablet the whole time. Inko takes it in stride though.

“Ok! Let’s get planning!”

-

Inko somehow manages to convince the captain that the ship needs a party. Her reasoning being that they deserve something fun after everything that’s happened. That they needed something to relieve the stress, something fun to do. Slaine thinks that the captain probably just agreed because she knew it would be more trouble to argue with Inko than it would be to allow the party.

Slaine agrees with her reasoning. He knows he needs to relax. And get his mind off a certain expressionless boy. Inaho said nothing when Inko returned with the news, just scrolled through something on his tablet. Inko took his silence as agreement to help, which it probably was. Inaho would have voiced any arguments if he had them. Slaine couldn’t say he wasn’t at least a little bit excited now. Even if it was only a makeshift party on a battleship to take everyone’s mind off of war. He had never been to a party before, so he didn’t really know what to expect. And now it seemed like Inaho was going to get involved, at least a little.

Listening to the girls plan music, and dancing, and decorations, and food, and games reminds Slaine that only a few months ago they were just high school students. They got thrusted into this war. They had normal lives before this. They might have been going to their own school dances around this time. 

He feels a pang of sadness for what they had lost and what they gave up to fight this war. He admires the way they have stayed so positive and happy throughout all of this. He knows he would have broken long ago; because he had.

_Because I was all alone. They have each other. If I had had someone to hold me up, would I have been able to be stronger?_

He looks at Inaho, who is still researching on his tablet. 

_If he was with me…_

Slaine feels like he could survive anything if Inaho was with him.

He shakes his head to clear his thoughts and gives his attention back to the girls.

“I think we can find some ribbon to use as streamers… Hey Slaine, do you think red or yellow would look best?”

Slaine thinks of Inaho’s eyes. “Red.” He winces at his answer, but no one notices anything wrong.

The girls agree, and drag Slaine, Inaho and Calm off to help them decorate.

-

They decide the best place to have the party is the mess hall. With the tables pushed to the side, the floor opened up for games and dancing, and it was big enough for the whole ship. They wait until breakfast is done so they can decorate without disturbing anyone. 

Inko and Nina run in, giggling, arms full of red ribbon. 

“Where did you find all of that?” Slaine asks, mouth agape. Are they really going to have to hang all that?

“Shh!” Inko says, and bumps Nina's shoulder with a snicker. They unceremoniously dump the ribbon on the ground.

Inko winks at Nina “Ok! I’m off!” Nina says, heading out.

Inko picks up one end of a ribbon and grins at the boys.

“Slaine, can you grab me a chair from over there?” 

Slaine complies, and Inko hops on it.

“Hold it down so I don’t fall. Inaho, hand me some tape,”

“Maybe I should stand on the chair…I’m taller than you…” Slaine says, as Inko strands on her tiptoes to get the ribbon in the right position.

“No. You wouldn’t know where to hang it to fulfill my vision,” She answers with a grin. “Tape.”

“What do you need my help for? You have Nina, Slaine and Calm.” Inaho grumbles, looking longingly at his tablet, as he hands Inko her tape, while Slaine holds down the chair she is standing on.

“Because Calm’s too busy making sure every girl on the ship is coming.” Inko says. “And Nina is on a secret mission.”

Inaho is silent as they meticulously pass tape and hang ribbons. 

She finishes taping up the ribbon along the wall, and jumps down from the chair. “Oh! I need to go check on something!” She turns to the boys. “You guys can finish decorating, right?” 

Slaine looks at her dubiously. Does she really think Slaine and Inaho, of all people, can decorate the room? What about her ‘vision’? He opens his mouth to argue.

“Yeah.”

Slaine jerks his head, mouth still open with unsaid protests, to stare at Inaho. 

“Great!” She gives them a smile and a wave and runs out before Slaine even fully understands what just happened. 

“Why did you do that?!” Slaine demands. “Hey! You can’t just go use your tablet! That was your plan all along! Get Inko to leave so you could use it and leave me to do all the work!”

Inaho holds up his tablet for Slaine to see. “I am looking up decoration tips.” 

Indeed, the screen shows a very happy woman hanging up streamers.

“W-what? Why?” 

It was the last thing Slaine expected Inaho to do.

To Slaine’s frustration, Inaho doesn’t answer; he drags the chair to a different wall.

“Tape this in the corner,” Inaho says, handing Slaine an end of ribbon.

“What! Why do I have to be the hanger?”

“Because, as you said before, you are the tallest.”

“I said I was taller than Inko!” Slaine thinks back to Inaho standing next to Inko. He grins. “Wait. You’re just as short as Inko! I can’t believe I never noticed it before now!”

Inaho huffs. “You’re not significantly taller.”

“At least I’m taller than Inko!” He laughs. 

“There are many benefits to being short; such as-”

“Did you research that on your tablet too?” 

“Just hang the ribbon.”

Slaine laughs and tapes the ribbon end in the corner. 

“This says that we should twist it as we take it the next point to create a ‘neat effect’,” Inaho says, and Slaine starts messing with the streamer. “No, not like that. Look.” 

Slaine gets off the chair and stands next to Inaho to look at the tablet. Inaho scrolls through the page, showing Slaine all the different ideas. Slaine is very aware of how close he is to Inaho. Their shoulders are touching slightly, so that they both have enough room to look at the small tablet. He feels lightheaded. He feels warm. He feels alive, decorating the room with Inaho. 

He should pull away. He should. But he doesn’t. He’s had so little happiness in his life. He’s drunk on the feeling of Inaho’s shoulder against his. 

“We should do that,” Inaho says, pointing to another picture. 

“And that!” Slaine adds, pointing to another, and Inaho nods in agreement. 

Slaine gets back on the chair, twisting the ribbon correctly. He starts the tape it to the next point on the wall. 

“A little to the left.”

Slaine laughs. Who knew Inaho would be such a picky decorator? 

“What?” Inaho asks defensively.

“Nothing.”

They finish the wall and start on the next idea: hanging strips of ribbon down from the doorway that people could walk through.

They find scissors and begin cutting the ribbon. 

It’s taking a lot longer than Slaine expected because Inaho insists on cutting each strip the exact same length.

“Inaho,” Slaine says, exasperated after 20 minutes of cutting. “No one cares if they are all the same length.” 

“The site says to cut 20 streamers of the same length.”

“I’m sure they meant approximately!”

Slaine’s argument is too late though, because Inaho finishes his 20th strip just then. 

Inaho hands Slaine the strips one by one and Slaine tapes them above the door. They step back to admire their work, and Slaine has to admit, it looks pretty cool.  
“We should blow up some balloons,” Inaho suggests, pointing to another picture on the site.

So Inaho and Slaine grab the packet of balloons that Inko had somehow managed to produce with the ribbons.

Slaine’s cheeks are hurting and he feels lightheaded after blowing up so many balloons. But he is still able to fully enjoy the sight of Inaho blowing up balloons, cheeks puffed out, face red, brows furrowed in concentration. 

There are multicolored balloons littered all over the floor when they are finished.

“Now the roof,” Inaho says. Slaine looks up and then looks to Inaho in disbelief. “The site says that streamers dangling from the roof will tie everything together.”

Slaine knows there’s no arguing with Inaho on this. He sighs and moves the chair to the center of the room. He has to stand on his toes to reach the roof, and even then it’s a stretch. Inaho is holding the chair and handing him tape.

He gets the ribbons attached almost halfway across the ceiling before he slips. 

His foot slides off the chair and he crashes into Inaho on his way down, pulling the roof streamers with him.

They land on the floor next to each other, balloons flying. Slaine sits up, he is fine, just a little embarrassed. Though, it is Inaho’s fault for making him put streamers on the ceiling. 

He looks over to make sure Inaho is ok and bursts out laughing at the sight sitting next to him.

All the fallen streamers and the parts he had yet to hang had fallen on Inaho. They are draped all over his head and body and around him. His still expressionless face makes the sight even funnier. Slaine wishes he had a camera. 

“That’s what you deserve for making me do that impossible task!” Slaine laughs.

Then Inaho smiles and Slaine’s heart feels light at the sight. And then his heart stops all together when Inaho reaches out a hand and touches Slaine’s hair.   
And then he feels the crackle of static electricity.

He had landed in a pile of balloons, and they must have rubbed against his hair as they went flying everywhere. He can feel his hair sticking up. He can still feel Inaho’s hand in his hair, even though he had already withdrawn it.

Inaho is still smiling, and then he snorts, eyes shining. It’s almost like that was Inaho laughing… Slaine’s heart feels like it’s going to burst.

Slaine growls in mock anger, and grabs the nearest balloon. He lunges at Inaho, trying to rub the balloon in Inaho’s hair.

Inaho dodges his attack, and throws the pile of fallen streamers in Slaine’s face. 

“We already know who the better fighter is, Orange. You can’t escape forever!”

“We’ll see, Bat!”

The room becomes a warzone of flying streamers and balloons. 

When Inko walks back in five minutes later she finds Inaho struggling to push Slaine back with his hands braced against Slaine’s chest, and Slaine’s arms outstretched toward Inaho, a balloon in hand. Both boys have streamers on them. The chair is tipped over in the center of the room, fallen streamers dangling from the ceiling and all over the floor. 

“What are you guys doing?!”

Slaine stops trying to rub the balloon in Inaho’s hair, and Inaho drops his arms from Slaine’s chest. They stare at Inko. 

Slaine feels his face heat up. Inko trusted them and they let her down. “I-I’m sor-”

Inko bursts out laughing. “You two look ridiculous!” 

Slaine’s mouth is open in shock at the twist of events. But he cracks a smile too, at Inko’s laughter. He has to admit, Inaho, with his usually expressionless, serious face and put-together demeanor, covered in streamers and ruffled from his fight against Slaine was an unexpected sight.

A sight Slaine didn’t mind looking at…

Inko stops laughing and takes a deep breath. “Anyway, minus the mess on the floor, the room looks great!”

She pulls them both into a hug. “Thank you!”

Slaine initially stiffens at the contact. He doesn’t remember the last time he was hugged. But he soon melts into the contact. It feels nice, to be hugged by a friend. It feels nice having someone hold him. He doesn’t want to let this feeling go, and the hug ends too soon.

“I’ll clean up! Go get ready or do whatever you need to do!” Inko says as she shoos them out of the door. 

On the other side of the closed door, Slaine looks at Inaho and lets out a laugh at what just transpired. He can’t believe that they got in a decoration war. He can’t believe that he got Inaho to participate. This whole thing just seems unbelievable. 

He knows he won’t soon forget the image of Inaho smiling, covered in ribbon.

The next few hours fly by. Slaine doesn’t know what Inaho went off to do, but before he knows it, Slaine is being dragged from the sleeping quarters by Inko.

“Come on! It’s time to go!” She says. “Oh. Here, put this on.” She hands him a bundle of clothes. He notices then that she is wearing something nicer than her usual uniform. Did she bring extra clothes? Was she planning for a party when she left for war? Slaine didn’t know. How Inko got half the stuff she did was a mystery to him.   
She pushes him back into the room, and he puts on an outfit that seems very similar to the uniforms on the ship. He is slightly upset at this. He still hasn’t received his own uniform. He has been cycling between sweats and his old uniform. 

He makes sure the shirt is buttoned up, and that it doesn’t expose any scars. He ties the black tie Inko gave him. He returns to Inko and his heart jerks when she takes a hold of his tie and loosens it, and unbuttons his shirt a little. 

“There. That looks better!” She says, stepping back, satisfied. 

A subtle check reassures Slaine that he is still sufficiently covered, so he follows Inko to the mess hall.

The hall is completely transformed from its usual state. The tables line the side of the walls. The lights have been turned down, and there is music playing in the background. Their decorations look good in the dim lighting Slaine notices proudly. 

People are mingling in the middle, and some are sitting at the tables. Kids run by him, playing with balloons around the room. Slaine hadn’t realized there was so many people on the ship. It was easy to forget that there was not only soldiers on board, but refugees as well. He feels a pang as he looks around. All these people could have died because of him.

Just then, Nina runs up to Inko and Slaine, with Princess Asseylum and Eddelrittuo not far behind.

“Slaine! Isn’t this wonderful!?” Princess Asseylum asks.

“Ah… Yes.” Slaine sees Inaho, and Inko runs off to him. Slaine wants to know what is going on, but he can’t listen to two conversations at once. He’s happy that Princess Asseylum is excited, but he wants to know what Inko is saying to Inaho too.

“At least take off the sweater!”

“The ribbons are so pretty! Did you-”

“Why?”

“Because it-”

“Slaine!” Nina tugs on his arm, and he reluctantly has to redirect his attention from Inaho and Inko to Nina. “Did Inko tell you about the surprise?”

“Uh…no…”

Inko returns then, with Inaho in tow behind her, looking as thrilled as usual. It seems that Inko had managed to convince Inaho to remove his usual sweater, or forcibly took it, because he was without it and his jacket. It is the first time Slaine has seen him in just a shirt and tie. 

He looks good. Very good.

_Don’t stare. Don’t stare._

Too late. He is definitely staring. Inaho’s tie is still tightly tied, unlike Slaine’s now slightly loosened one. He still looked as clean-cut as ever, but somehow this was different. Slaine couldn’t rip his gaze from the brown hair and red eyes in front of him. It’s like Inaho’s the only one in the room. 

This is bad.

Luckily, Inko and Nina decide that now is the time to show them their big surprise, since Calm appeared. Slaine shakes his head lightly, trying to clear his thoughts.

_I just won’t look at him._

That’s easier said than done, but Slaine manages to follow the group to the kitchen without as much as a glance at Inaho. He keeps his eyes fixed pointedly at the back of Inko’s bobbing head.

“Ta-da!” Inko says happily, as Nina proudly points her arms towards a huge cake. It is covered in multicolored frosting that is dripping off the sides.

Princess Asseylum gasps in pleasure and awards them with a signature smile. “It’s wonderful!” She says.

“Ohhh sweet! What flavor is it?” Calm asks.

“Chocolate! Inko and I spent all day making it!” Nina answers.

“How many eggs did you use?” Asks Inaho.

_He’s worried about them using all of the eggs. Not that it matters, he can’t eat eggs this week anyway._

Slaine smiles smugly, and almost forgets he’s not supposed to look at Inaho.

He must have missed the rest of the conversation, because he is being dragged from the kitchen back to the party room.

The girls run off again, Inko dragging Inaho with them. As much as Slaine wants to follow Inaho and Princess Asseylum, he decides against it. He opts to sit with Calm off to the side.

“Man. Inaho gets all the girls,” Calm complains.

“What?”

“I mean, it’s been obvious that Inko’s liked him for years,” Calm explains. “And now the princess too!”

“W-wait, what?!”

Inko likes Inaho? Now that Slaine thinks about it, it seems kind of obvious. But why does Calm think that Princess Asseylum likes Inaho?

“Yuki seems to think that she likes him anyway. And that he likes her. He talks to her an awful lot. But who can tell with Inaho?”

Slaine’s head is going in circles. Does Inaho like Asseylum? Does Inaho like Inko? Does Asseylum like Inaho? 

He glances over to Inko, who seems to be trying to get Inaho to dance with her. He is easily shrugging her off. Asseylum seems more preoccupied with the ribbons and balloons and dancing in general than in Inaho. 

But Slaine doesn’t know. He has never had real friends before. He doesn’t know what normal interaction is like. 

Before Slaine can question Calm further though, he gets up to go socialize with a group of girls he spotted. He winks at Slaine and leaves.

Slaine spends a minute watching Inaho stand on the dance floor with Inko. He looks just like he always does: emotionless. He feels happy that Inaho isn’t dancing with Inko. And then he feels guilty. He has no right to be jealous. He has no right to not want Inko to end up with Inaho. It’s not like Slaine’s feelings for Inaho had any bearing on Inaho’s life. Slaine would never tell anyone. Nothing would ever happen. Inaho should be happy with someone else.

Slaine almost wishes he could ask Inko about her feelings for Inaho. Maybe she could help him understand why he liked Inaho and what to do. 

He dismisses that idea instantly. Not only was he never going to tell anyone, but he definitely shouldn’t tell someone else who liked the same person. Plus, he’s sure these feelings will go away soon anyway. 

Though, looking at Inaho in the dim light, he isn’t sure.

He sighs and looks away.

And then Nina comes up to him and asks him to dance with her.

Slaine had to know how to dance if he was going to be Princess Asseylum’s tutor. She actually helped teach him. It was expected of all those that would be attending the galas and events of the counts.

So Slaine accepts and they make their way to the dance floor. It’s nice and gets his mind off of Inaho for a minute. 

When the song ends, Princess Asseylum comes over and asks him to dance with her as well.

“It’s just like old times, Slaine!” She says, undoubtedly remembering those days of their dance lessons fondly. There are less fond memories surrounding those lessons for Slaine, but she doesn’t know that and he won’t ruin her happiness.

“Yes,” He smiles at her as the song fills the air and Eddelrittuo glares. “Except now we are on Earth, not Mars.”

“Ah, yes! Earth is so wonderful!” Her eyes go distant. “I hope we can make peace soon, so that everyone can enjoy its beauty!”

“I agree. I’m sure it will happen soon.”

The song ends and Princess Asseylum politely retreats to converse with some refugees. Slaine heads back to the tables, but is caught by the arm before he can sit down.

“Slaine!” Yuki says. “Dance with me!”

He can’t deny her, especially not after dancing with Nina and Asseylum.

As they dance, he notes the similarities between her face and Inaho’s. It would be difficult to tell they were related without knowing, but with the knowledge he could see how her eyes were the same shape as Inaho’s. Her hair was almost the same color as Inaho’s. And while her smile was wider and brighter, he could see Inaho in it too. 

“Thank you so much for helping my little brother! I’m glad he has made you as a friend!” She says happily. 

_Why does everyone have to talk about Inaho when I am trying not to think about him?!_

“He doesn’t have many friends,” Yuki continues.

“Has he always been so…” Slaine tries to find the words to explain Inaho in a non-offensive way.

Yuki seems to understand. “Yes. Even before our parents died. He’s not really as emotionless as he seems though! He just can’t express himself well. But as his big sister, I can always tell what he is feeling! For instance, I can tell Nao has been happier lately. It must have to do with the princess!” She grins and Slaine’s heart twists.

“R-really?”

“Yes. For Nao, giving someone his undivided attention is his ultimate form of affection!”

Slaine thinks about how Inaho always seems to ignore Inko. Maybe her feelings are one-sided… But he does seem to listen to Princess Asseylum a lot.

“I hope you aren’t jealous,” Yuki says and Slaine’s heart stops. Had she figured out he liked Inaho?! 

“W-what?” He sputters.

“I heard that you and her were good friends. I hope you aren’t jealous that she probably likes Nao.”

Slaine’s face reddens for multiple reason.

“N-no. She is just my princess.”

Yuki smiles at that. “Can you imagine what it would be like if Nao married a princess!?”

Slaine doesn’t want to. But if Inaho likes Asseylum, he has no reason to object. 

The song ends, and Yuki thanks him for the dance and leaves him with a wink.

Luckily, no one else asks him to dance. He looks around and sees Inaho sitting down, looking at his tablet.

_Typical._

Slaine snorts; but his heart feels fighter at the sight of Inaho alone and not even glancing at Princess Asseylum.

Despite himself, Slaine walks over to Inaho. He glances at the tablet in Inaho’s hands as he walks by.

“How to dance?!” He asks, incredulously. Inaho looks up from the webpage explaining dancing techniques and steps. It was probably the last thing Slaine expected Inaho to be looking at. “You don’t know how to dance.” Slaine can’t help the laugh that escapes.

“It’s not an important skill.”

“Then why are you looking at it?”

“…It seemed important now…”

Does he want to dance with Princess Asseylum?

Slaine sighs. It doesn’t matter.

“Come on,” Slaine gestures to the dance floor. “You can’t learn from reading a page. I’ll show you.”

_What am I doing?_

To his surprise, Inaho immediately puts down his tablet and follows Slaine to the center of the room. Most of the people in the room are dancing by now, so it’s pretty crowded and noisy. Balloons are flying everywhere. 

Inaho and Slaine stand facing each other. 

_This is a bad idea._

“Put your hands on my shoulders,” Slaine says, as he lightly rests his hands on Inaho’s waist.

_Very bad idea._

“Why am I taking the role of the woman?” 

“Because you don’t know how to dance, so I have to lead.”

“Ah.”

“Now follow me,” Slaine says, and they start to move with the music. Or at least they try.

“Hey!” Slaine says, after Inaho steps on his foot for the fifth time.

“You’re the one leading.” Inaho says accusingly. 

“I can’t lead well with a bad partner!”

“If I am bad, it’s because you’re teaching me.”

“Shut up and dance, Orange!”

“I am, Bat.”

“Are you even trying?!”

“Yes.”

Slaine notices that sometime during their bickering, they had fallen into rhythm with the music. Inaho smiles at him.

_Don’t stare. Don’t stare._

It’s no use. Inaho is looking into his eyes. And he is looking back. Somehow, Inaho’s hands have left Slaine’s shoulders and wrapped around behind his neck. Slaine’s hands have wound themselves tighter around Inaho’s back. Slaine feels hot.

_Worst idea ever._

They are close. Too close. Not close enough. 

Slaine can feel Inaho’s soft breath on his face. He can see the stands of Inaho’s hair. He can see every light freckle on Inaho’s skin. The dim lights, the slow music, Inaho without his sweater, it’s all getting to Slaine. The music seems to fade away. All the people disappear. He and Inaho are the only ones in the world. 

Slaine can’t keep his eyes off of Inaho’s lips. Inaho’s arms tighten around Slaine, drawing them a little closer. Their faces seem only inches apart. Slaine drags his eyes back to meet Inaho’s red ones. He’s lost in the gaze. 

It seems like their faces are almost touching. He can feel Inaho’s warmth seeping into his hands.

“Inaho…” Slaine whispers.

They’re even closer now. Slaine feels Inaho’s breath on his lips as he exhales. His lips are so close…

_Maybe this wasn’t a bad idea…_

“Inaho,” He repeats and closes his eyes, tilting his head forward slightly.

And then everything is ripped away. 

The music, peoples’ chatter and laughter, the world, it all floods back.

Inaho has released his hold on Slaine, and stepped away.

He isn’t even looking at Slaine. He is looking over Slaine’s shoulder towards his tablet.

“I thought of something. I have to go,” Inaho says and walks away without as much as a glance at Slaine.

Slaine face is as red as it has ever been. He feels heat pounding off his cheeks. 

Of course Inaho was just thinking about battle plans or something while they danced.

He feels like an idiot. He feels disappointed. He feels lost. He misses the feel of Inaho close to him already. 

Slaine is frozen in a sea of dancing, smiling faces, watching Inaho grab his tablet and leave the room. 

Hopefully Inaho was too absorbed in his thoughts to realize what almost just happened. 

_That was a bad idea._

I should have stayed away from him. 

I can’t stay away from him.

I’m in too deep.

-

Inko had been watching Inaho all night. After her failed attempts at getting him to dance with her, and his retreat to his tablet her mood had soured. And then she saw Inaho agree to dance with Slaine. And her blood boiled. Why would he dance with Slaine and not her?!

But then she saw how Slaine was looking at Inaho. It was how she looked at Inaho.

Slaine liked Inaho. Slaine liked Inaho.

How could he like Inaho, of all people?!

She smiled because that’s exactly what she asked herself.

She was also surprised to find that she wasn’t really mad or jealous that Slaine liked Inaho. 

Mostly, she felt bad for Slaine, for liking someone as difficult as Inaho. She knew first-hand how hard it was.

Maybe she would talk to Slaine…

Slaine and Inaho were her friends above all else. She just wanted them to be happy. She just wanted to be happy…

And she realized she hadn’t really been happy chasing after Inaho. In the beginning it was fun, but time made it a miserable experience. She gets angry at him constantly, for just being Inaho. She is constantly frustrated and disappointed. She realizes she has been missing out on all of the fun of the dance because she was too busy glaring at Inaho. Her friends are all having fun without her because she is too preoccupied with Inaho not acting the way she wants him to. She had been missing out on the fun of just being Inaho’s friend because she was trying to be more.

Maybe it’s time to let go. She wants to be happy. She wants to be dancing with Nina and Seylum, carefree and happy. Not stressing over a stupid boy. She wants to enjoy her life again.

She hadn’t even been jealous when she realized Slaine liked Inaho. Maybe she had been chasing after him for so long that she didn’t realize that somewhere along the way she had stopped actually wanting him. She had been chasing a memory, a long gone dream, because it was what she was used to. It was what she thought she wanted. 

She glanced over at Nina’s smiling face. Yes it was time to let go. Let Slaine have the pain of dealing with that idiot. She would need to thank Slaine someday for making her realize Inaho wasn’t really what she wanted anymore. Who knew how long she would have wasted her life pursuing him out of habit.

She was happy to have Inaho as a friend. Now she could fully enjoy his company instead of snapping at him. She felt freer and happier than she had in a long time as she joined her group of dancing friends. She spent the rest of the night dancing and laughing with Seylum and Nina.

-

Inaho had to get out of there before he did something stupid. 

He had been stupid all day.

He couldn’t deny that he wanted to spend time with Slaine. That is why he agreed to decorate with Slaine.

But being with Slaine seemed to make him lose all reason. Slaine got to him in a way no one else did. 

He remembered the feel of Slaine’s soft hair between his fingers. The static spark from the balloons. 

And then Slaine looked so attractive at the party. His button-up shirt and tie, the slow music, the dim lighting, Slaine’s eyes. It was all like a drug to Inaho.  
Inaho didn’t care that he didn’t know how to dance. It truly was a useless skill. 

But then everyone started dancing with Slaine. Nina, Seylum, even Yuki. And it was suddenly very important.

He wanted to dance with Slaine.

He needed to be close to Slaine. 

So he decided to learn. Once he had mastered the theory, he would bump into Slaine and say he wanted to talk about battle tactics, and suggest they dance while talking. That was the plan. But learning to dance was much harder than Inaho had anticipated. 

And Slaine offered to teach him. Probably out of obligation for helping him on the ship. 

And Slaine looked good. And Saline was close and warm. And Inaho felt himself being drawn in. He couldn’t stop himself from moving closer. Closer to Slaine’s eyes, his smell, his hair, his lips. They were so close. 

Something clicked. He wasn’t just physically attracted to Slaine. He was attracted to everything about Slaine. He had…a crush… on Slaine. 

This was much more inconvenient than simple attraction. Inaho suddenly knew it these feelings were much less temporary than he had originally thought. 

And Slaine’s face was right there. His eyes bright. His lips slightly parted. 

Inaho wanted to kiss him. Inaho needed to kiss him.

Inaho needed to leave before he did.

So he pulled himself away from Slaine and left. It was the easiest solution. 

Now he was walking through the empty ship to analyze his thoughts.

So his feelings for Slaine are stronger than he originally thought. He would just have to be more careful. He could put them aside. Focus on the war.

Inaho hoped Slaine hadn’t noticed anything amiss at the party. Probably not. He was most likely dacning with Seylum or Inko or Nina right now, not even missing Inaho’s presence. 

Inaho’s heart hurt. He pushed the feeling away.

-

There was no point in dancing anymore. Dancing with anyone after Slaine’s dance with Inaho would just feel empty. 

He rests his chin in his hands and sighs. He hopes Inaho didn’t leave because of him. 

He can’t stop glancing at the door, half hoping Inaho will come back. 

He watches Princess Asseylum dance with and Inko. 

I wonder if she really does like him…

At least they were having fun. Inko looks happier than he’s ever seen her. She laughs and jumps into Nina’s arms.

He misses the feel of Inaho in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a fun chapter! But the boys are still idiots :(
> 
> I hope it turned out ok! This was something I was wanting to write for a while now!
> 
> I have the next chapters already planned out, so hopefully the next one will be up soon!
> 
> Thanks for reading :)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ll preface this chapter by saying that this is the scene that originally made me start writing this story. It took me longer to get to it than I thought it would! And it definitely didn’t turn out the way I thought it would.

When Slaine wakes up he instinctively looks over to Inaho’s bed. It’s empty, unsurprisingly, even though it’s pretty early. Inaho hadn’t said a word to him since their dance yesterday. Slaine hadn’t even seen him after he left the party. Slaine had waited up for Inaho to come to the sleeping quarters, but he fell asleep before seeing Inaho arrive. Slaine wonders if Inaho even came back at all. His bed doesn’t look slept in, but it’s Inaho, who meticulously makes his bed anyway, so Slaine can’t tell for sure.

He sighs and gets up. He should stop worrying himself over Inaho. He should, but that doesn’t stop him from looking for Inaho in the almost empty mess hall. He’s not there, even though it’s around the time Slaine knows he usually eats. 

_Is he avoiding me?_

_No, Inaho probably doesn’t care even enough about me to go out of his way to avoid me… it would be a waste of time for him. He’s probably just busy._

Even though Inaho isn’t there to watch him, Slaine fills his plate with eggs despite the delicious smelling bacon. 

_I wonder if Inaho went back to his usual eggs._

The bet seems kind of silly in retrospect. Inaho would have no reason to stick with it. Slaine enjoyed their fun argument, and subsequent challenge, but Inaho probably discarded it as unnecessary now.

I shouldn’t overestimate me and Inaho’s friendship. I care about him more than he cares about me. I can’t think that he would do stuff just for me. He knows that I know my way around now, so he doesn’t need to wait to eat with me.

Still, Slaine misses talking to Inaho at breakfast. He hopes that he will at least get to spend some time with Inaho in the future, even if Inaho has decided that he doesn’t want to spend all his time with Slaine anymore.

He thinks back to yesterday, his hands around Inaho’s waist. His face reddens. What if yesterday’s the reason why Inaho seems to be avoiding him?

_I am putting way too much thought into this. Inaho probably hasn’t even thought about me once today. He’s just busy with more important things, it’s not like he’s not my friend anymore…_

His feeling of unease doesn’t go away.

_I’m the one who caught these stupid feelings for him. It’s my fault this is all going wrong. Why do I have to ruin everything?_

“Slaine?” 

Slaine jumps at the sound of his name. He looks over to see Yuki standing next to him. She looks very tired, her hair is out of place, and she is rubbing her eyes. “I was told that you wanted to train on that martian kataphrakt-” She breaks off with a yawn. “Sorry, this is the earliest I’ve probably ever been up!”

Earliest she’s woken up… how is she so opposite to Inaho?

“But Nao woke me up to make sure I get you to the repair room.” She finishes.

Slaine’s heart sinks. Inaho woke up his sister to take him so that Inaho wouldn’t have to. 

_He is avoiding me. Or I am just so unimportant to him that he can’t be bothered to take me himself._

Slaine doesn’t like either option. 

“Oh, are you eating eggs?” Yuki says, looking down at Slaine’s plate. “Nao loves eggs! But when I ate breakfast with him this morning, he didn’t even touch any. It was so weird! I hope he’s not sick… Maybe I should make him see Dr. Yagarai,” She says thoughtfully. 

Now Slaine is confused. Inaho didn’t eat eggs? He is still doing their agreement? But why? Why would he refrain from eating his favorite food just because of his bet with Slaine if he didn’t even want to be bothered to take Slaine to the kataphrakt? Out of a sense of obligation? 

Inaho is the most confusing person he has ever met. 

“Anyway, are you ready to go?” She asks.

“Yes. Thank you for escorting me.”

“No thanks needed!” She beams. “I just wish I had gotten to sleep in a little longer.”

Yuki talks to him about various things all the way to the docking bay. Slaine barely gets a word in edgewise from her talking about everything from sleep to clothing to mars. Slaine doesn’t mind though. It’s nice to just be able to listen to her talk about such normal things. It’s a huge difference from Inaho’s intense conversations.  
When they get to the docking bay, Yuki stays to help him. There are only a few other people up this early. They are working on the kataphrakts and sky carrier damaged in their battle against Count Cruhteo.

Inaho’s Orange kataphrakt is still heavily damaged, Slaine notes with a pang of guilt. Inaho could have died. 

“Ah, here it is,” Yuki says, gesturing to the Tharsis. It looks terrible. Is he missing something here?

“Uh… How am I supposed to train in it when it’s so damaged?”

Yuki laughs. “Nao said you should just familiarize yourself with the controls. He checked everything out himself, and said it all seemed safe and functional for you to use. He wasn’t sure though.” She laughs again. “It’s rare that there’s something Nao doesn’t know. You have a one up on him! I don’t know how you can operate those things. Martian technology is so much more complicated than terran.”

Inaho checked the Tharsis himself. He made sure it was safe for Slaine? Why did Inaho’s actions seem so contradictory? 

They probably only seems that way to me. I’m reading too much into them. 

Slaine stares up at the Tharsis. He knows Yuki is waiting for him to get in. But he can’t bring himself to do it. It feels wrong, wrong, wrong. He’s thinking about the punishment he’ll get later, even though he knows there will be none. He can’t shake the feeling of dread. 

But Yuki is waiting. She is going to wonder what’s wrong if he waits any longer or refuses to get in all together. 

And he knows if he makes an excuse, Inaho will hear about it and investigate further. That’s the last thing he wants. 

So he steels himself and climbs in the cockpit. He tries to imagine that it’s just another martian kataphrakt. It’s not the Tharsis. It’s just a normal kat. 

He’s able to relax a little. He doesn’t think about Count Cruhteo sitting in this very seat, killing people. 

The interior is similar to other martian kataphrakts. Slaine tries to start the screens up. He flips what he thinks are the correct switches, and when that doesn’t work, he pushes some buttons. But nothing is working. It’s almost like the aldnoah drive is offline…

But that would only happen if Count Cruhteo was dead, or in a coma… or if Princess Asseylum deactivated it. But why would she do that? And Slaine knew it was working when they originally brought it here. So why wasn’t it working now?

Could Count Cruhteo really be…?

No, it just must be more damaged than they had thought. The aldnoah drive must be broken from battle. Count Cruhteo isn’t dead. It’s broken.

Slaine touches the aldnoah drive and suddenly everything powers on. 

See, it was just malfunctioning. 

Count Cruhteo is alive. 

Slaine feels queasy. 

But he begins to play with the controls. They really are almost the same as what he is used too. Much more familiar than the terran kataphrakts, anyway. It won’t take Slaine long to master the Tharsis. If he can get comfortable with it. If he can get inside of it without this coil of dread. The Tharsis’s ability relies on speed and reaction time. The pilot needs to be one with the Tharsis. Without a seamless connection, the pilot is as good as dead in a fight. Slaine knows this.

“Slaine,” Yuki says over the communication channel. “Inaho was able to upload simulation software into the Tharsis’s hard drive. So even though it’s physically unusable, you can still use it to practice with the simulation.”

When did Inaho have time to do all this? Maybe he really didn’t sleep last night…

“Uh, ok,” He says and braces himself for the fight. Three enemy kats appear on the screen. They shoot at him, but Slaine can see exactly where the bullets will land. He dodges. It’s a little disorientating seeing everything happen in the future, and then happen again in real time. 

It takes him a few minutes, but he is able to successfully defeat the three enemies. Yuki keeps sending practice simulations at him. After about an hour of practicing, Slaine feels like he is getting the hang of it. He’s practically forgotten that he’s in the Tharsis. He easily dispatches the last enemy. He knows that he could have done it better, and faster, but he is still not good enough. 

“Good job, Slaine!” Yuki says, and Slaine suddenly misses his previous training session with Inaho. He liked their back-and-forth. Inaho would not have praised Slaine for beating some simple simulations. He would have criticized Slaine for taking so long to do it. And Slaine would retort that he would like to see Inaho try to do it better in a new machine. He wishes Inaho was here training with him. 

But instead it’s Yuki’s voice that says “Ok, here is something a bit harder. We recently fought this enemy, so we have a lot of data on it.”

The simulation starts and he is walking down a street on earth. “Thermal signature detected,” the simulated enemy is right around the corner. Slaine raises his gun. He is determined to beat this enemy faster than before, and do it so well even Inaho wouldn’t have anything to say.

The enemy crashes around the corner.

It’s a martian kataphrakt. A purple martian kataphrakt. Sir Trilliam’s kataphrakt. 

A choked sound escapes his throat. He can’t make his hands move. 

He sees himself shooting Sir Trilliam in the chest. In the face. Everywhere. Shooting him over and over. 

The fact that he’s in the Tharsis comes rushing back to him, clearer than ever. He sees Sir Trilliam’s lifeless body, covered in blood. He sees his steady hands holding a gun, no remorse. 

He sees himself in the Tharsis. He sees Count Cruhteo’s rage. He sees Count Cruhteo in the Tharsis. He sees dead innocents. 

He sees red.

The simulation screen is flashing red. He’s dead. He hadn’t even moved against the simulation. 

He tries to get his breathing under control. He wipes away the beads of sweat that formed on his forehead. 

Yuki must think he’s an idiot.

“I don’t know,” He hears her say through the channel, but it’s muffled. Slaine doesn’t think she’s talking to him. 

So who is she talking to? Who else saw what just happened?

“I-I’m sorry, Yuki,” He says. “I-I think I’m just tired.”

“Of course, Slaine!” She sounds relieved. “I should probably stop using that simulation though…” She mutters. 

Slaine pulls himself out of the Tharsis. He tries to find who Yuki was talking to. Who else saw his miserable failure? 

He only sees a few crew men on the other end of the room. But he manages to catch a glimpse of a brown head disappearing out the door.

Inaho?

Was it Inaho, or does he just think so because that’s who Slaine has been thinking about?

Why would Inaho come to watch him train if he didn’t even want to take him here in the first place?

Yuki approaches him. He tries to school his features into something calm. 

“Good job, Slaine,” She says again, even though Slaine knows that she knows he messed up. “You should take a shower and relax. You can come back with Nao later.”  
He doubts Inaho would take the time to come back with Slaine. But the shower sounds nice, so he follows her out. 

They near the showers, and Slaine prepares to thank her and say his goodbyes. But she says “Oh! Wait here! I’ll be right back!” and leaves before he can. Slaine waits awkwardly for her. He fidgets, wondering what she could be doing.

She returns a few minutes later, holding a bundle of clothes. “Here,” She says. “You can’t keep wearing those sweats! You need a uniform. I can’t believe no one has gotten you one yet!”

Slaine agrees with that sentiment. “Ah, yes. Thank you very much.”

He feels happier. He was tired of wearing his martian uniform or the sweats. It made him feel like an outsider, like he didn’t really belong here. Now maybe he could really be a part of everyone. 

He gets in the shower. It feels so good. He feels like he’s washing away the memories of Sir Trilliam’s body. The memories of Count Cruhteo coming at him with anger in his eyes are running down the drain with the water. 

He can relax now. Princess Asseylum is safe. He’s safe. He has a shower, he has friends, and now he even has normal clothes. He belongs. 

_If only Inaho…_

He turns those thoughts off with the shower. 

He steps out of the shower and dresses. He uniform is a little snug, but it fits, and Slaine isn’t going to complain about the best thing that’s happened to him all day.  
He makes his way to the mess hall. It’s almost time for lunch already. He wonders if he’ll see Inaho…

“Oh my, Slaine!” Princess Asseylum exclaims. He turns to find her and Eddelrittuo standing next to him. “This must be earth’s clothing?!” Her eyes are sparking with joy, her hands are clapped together in delight. 

Slaine’s happy to see her so excited, but he flushes at all of the attention. 

“I was told to wear this. Yuki gave it to me.” He says.

“So lucky… It’s lovely!” She gets a look in her eyes. “I was envious of everybody wearing similar clothing, by all means, me too-”

“Your highness!” Eddelrittuo interjects. “No! You mustn’t wear the same thing as the terrans!” Princess Asseylum’s excitement does not lessen at Eddedlrittuo’s discouragement. So Eddelrittuo continues. “And also these times clothing in scarce…!” Now Princess Asseylum’s face drops in disappointment. 

_If that’s true, where did Yuki get mine then?_

“Eddelrittuo, you are right… I am sorry.”

Eddelrittuo ‘hmphs’ in triumph. “Ah well, your highness. You don’t need to worry about clothes like the terrans,” She puts her finger up knowingly. “You can simply change clothes with holograms.”

“That’s it! You’re a genius!”

“Ah-!!” Eddelrittuo’s face goes from smug to horror as her lecture on martian supremacy backfires. “Hey! Terran! Don’t just stand there! Stop the princess!” She says to Slaine.

Slaine is too overwhelmed at all that is happening to do anything. Besides, how is he supposed to stop her?

“Then I shall change immediately…” Asseylum says, and the air compresses and releases as she uses a hologram. “Does it suit me?” She asks.

Slaine and Eddelrittuo look on in shock at the sight of Princess Asseylum wearing a men’s uniform. 

“That one?!” Slaine chokes out. “Y-your highness… I believe that is the male uniform…”

Princess Asseylum gasps. “Is that so…!”

“Princess! Please change quickly!” Eddelrittuo says. 

“Then I shall change right now.” She says. Slaine sighs in relief that no one else saw her mistake. He feels the air compress and shimmer again. “How about this?” She asks.

Slaine’s mouth drops open in horror. Where Princess Asseylum had stood, now stands another Slaine in uniform. 

“Why me?!” 

“Why the terran?!” 

Slaine and Eddelrittuo shout at the same time.

“Eh? Since we were talking about the male uniforms…” She explains.

_Her highness became me… What do I do? What do I do?_

Slaine looks around and sees Inko and Nina sitting close by at a table. 

“Ah, your highness. Those are the female uniforms,” He whispers, pointing at Inko and Nina, hoping they won’t look this way. 

“I see!” And once again the air compresses. Slaine sighs in relief again. He feels like he's been on a roller coaster of emotions these last few minutes. “Then this should be perfect! How is it?”

Slaine’s stomach drops out. “It’s the worst!!!” He yells. 

Princess Asseylum is still him. But instead of wearing the male uniform, Asseylum-as-Slaine is wearing the female uniform. Slaine is looking at himself striking a pose in a tiny skirt. 

“Oh my, Slaine! It suits you very well!” Asseylum says, looking down at herself. 

“Y-Your highness!” 

Eddelrittuo snorts in amusement. “How about a walk inside the ship looking like that?” 

“P-please, return to your normal appearance quickly! If someone else saw you like this...” Slaine is panicking. “…a terrible misunderstanding might…” Inko and Nina are close by… if they saw Slaine wearing a female uniform…

A hand lands on his shoulder from behind him. 

-

Inaho had been avoiding Slaine. He figured that avoiding him was the best way to deal with these inconvenient feelings. The less he is near Slaine, the less likely he is to act on his feelings. 

But he found that even when he wasn’t around Slaine, he would just think about him anyway. So even though he managed to get Yuki to help Slaine train, Inaho couldn’t stop himself from going to watch. Slaine wouldn’t even know he was there. 

Slaine probably didn’t care anyway; didn’t even miss Inaho. Yuki and Inko and Nina and Calm were all better company than Inaho. 

But then something strange happened with Slaine in the simulation. He had been doing decently (not fast enough though), but then Slaine froze during the last simulation. Inaho knew Slaine had similarly frozen during the ordeal with Asseylum, but he couldn’t figure out why Slaine would suddenly freeze in the simulation. 

Was is because it was a martian kataphrakt that he was fighting? But he had fought that other martian kataphrakt with Inaho fine before...

Inaho was preoccupied with analyzing it. He didn’t even check to make sure his uniform was in the clean laundry spot when he got in the shower. It was when he got out that he discovered that his clothes were missing.

Where would they have gone? He sighed. This is what thinking about Slaine did to him. Slaine distracted him too much. 

He considered his options. He couldn’t walk around the ship naked. He wouldn’t necessarily mind, but he knew that others would object. His only other option was to find something else to wear. 

He looked around, and found another pile of clean clothes on the other side of the room. 

He sighed again when he saw whose they were. “Well, this is his fault for distracting me anyway.” He mumbled as he put on Slaine’s uniform. 

Now he couldn’t avoid Slaine anymore. At least for now. 

Inaho couldn’t deny that he felt a little happy that he had to go find Slaine. If he looked harder, he might have been able to find some other clothes. But he didn’t. He missed Slaine’s company. And this gave him a good excuse to talk to Slaine. 

It would be fine. If Inaho could keep his mind off of the fact that he was wearing Slaine’s clothes. 

Clothes that Slaine had worn.

Clothes that smelled slightly like Slaine.

Clothes that hung a little too loosely on him.

He was wearing Slaine’s clothes.

He didn’t think about it and went to find Slaine.

After checking the repair room, and training station, he finally spots the blonde head in the hallway by the mess hall.

He puts his hand on Slaine’s shoulder. Slaine jumps. “Orange?!”

“I’ve found you.” Inaho says. Why is he so anxious? He looks over Slaine’s shoulder. “…is what I thought. But there are two Bats…”

Inaho’s analytical mind can’t quite process what he is seeing. There are two Slaines standing in the hallway. The one in front of him looks very red, and panicked, staring at Inaho with eyes wide in horror. The other one is smiling and giggling. 

And wearing a skirt. 

Slaine’s in a skirt…

It’s not something Inaho had ever thought about. He never even considered he would see such a sight. But he didn’t want to look away.

Slaine’s legs… that skirt…

He almost doesn’t care about what was going on.

The skirted Slaine giggles. “I’m Asseylum, Inaho,” He – she – says.

The scene in front of him makes sense now. Seylum is using her holograms like she did when he first met her. To look like Slaine. In a skirt. Actually, it still doesn’t make any sense.

Inaho can’t come up with a reason as to why she would be doing this. It was completely illogical. 

But that didn’t make him any less attracted to the sight. 

He turns his gaze to the real Slaine, hoping that it will be a calmer sight and will get his mind off his current thoughts. He is dead wrong. 

Slaine is wearing Inaho’s uniform. 

Inaho knows it has to be his. It is tight on Slaine. 

Slaine is wearing my clothes… Slaine looks good in my clothes... Slaine looks good in a skirt... 

I’m wearing his clothes… He’s wearing my clothes…

Inaho’s heart is going to pound out of his chest. 

“Why are you wearing my clothes, Orange?!” Slaine asks, face as red as Inaho has ever seen it. Which is an accomplishment. 

“Yuki must have given you my clothes on mistake,” He says calmly, even though his pulse is much too high. 

“Eh?! So these are your clothes…” Slaine trails off. 

“Yeah so…” Inaho can’t think straight. Slaine in a skirt. Slaine in his clothes. He needs to get out of this situation. “Give them back.” He tugs at his jacket that Slaine is wearing. 

“What?! Right here, right now?! You can’t just expect someone to undress in the middle of the hall, Orange!”

By now, the commotion has attracted Inko and Nina from their table. They manage to look both shocked and gleeful at the sight that awaits them. 

“Wait! What is this?!” Inko cries excitedly, pulling out her phone to take pictures. 

“So cute!” Nina echos, also taking out her phone. 

Soon Inaho and Slaine are surrounded by flashes as they struggle over their clothing.

“It’s not fair…” Asseylum mutters sadly, now back to normal. At least Inaho only has to deal with one Slaine now. Though, he does wonder if Inko or Nina managed to get any pictures of Slaine in the woman’s uniform… “I also want to switch clothes with friends from earth! It’s not fair that only Slaine gets to do it!” She says. 

That manages to drag Nina and Inko’s attention away from Slaine and Inaho. They both run to Asseylum. 

“Let’s switch clothes!” Inko says, and Nina nods in agreement. They grab her arm and take off without a second glance, a disgruntled Eddelrittuo following behind. 

Now it’s just Inaho and Slaine in the hall. Inaho can think a little clearer. Which wasn’t all that helpful because all he wants to do is stare at Slaine in his clothes.  
“Now will you let me change in an appropriate spot?” Slaine asks, exasperated and still red. 

_I don’t really want him to change…_

“Yes.”

They go to the showers to exchange clothes. Inaho mourns the loss of the vision of Slaine in his clothes all the way there. He tries to think of a way he could tell Slaine to just keep them. But that would raise too much suspicion. Especially after the scene in the hall. 

_And I would never be able to focus near him. I just need this situation to be over._

“Are you done yet, Bat?” He asks, as he steps into Slaine’s stall to check.

“Orange!!! You can’t just barge in here! Get out!” Slaine is hunched over, arms wrapped around his torso, trying to minimize what Inaho can see. 

It doesn’t help. 

Slaine’s naked back. Slaine’s bare chest. 

Slaine’s scars.

The scars are what he is trying to hide. 

There are too many. The shape is too consistent. They are too faded. They aren’t from battle.

“Someone hurt you, purposefully.”

“I said get out!”

“Someone on mars. For a while it seems,” Inaho considers what he knows. “Most likely Count Cruhteo.”

“Inaho! Get out!” Slaine’s hands leave his body to cover his eyes. Inaho can see the scars clearer now. He can also see that they do nothing to diminish Slaine’s attractiveness. 

“That’s why you froze in the simulation earlier today.”

“Inaho… stop, please…” Slaine chokes out. 

“You’re letting those scars make you weak. You’re letting them rule you. They are a symbol of what you are fighting against, they should make you stronger.”

“You don’t understand!” He bangs his fist on the wall. Slaine’s hands are wet.

“I understand that you can’t fight in the Tharsis. That you are useless and probably dead if you do.”

“Why do you care?! You can’t even be bothered to help me train! It’s none of your business!” Slaine tosses Inaho’s clothes at his face. “Here! Now get out!” He hisses. 

“Fine.” 

-

Inaho fully intends to continue keeping his distance from Slaine. Especially since Slaine seems to be angry with him. So he eats dinner after everyone else leaves. He researches on his tablet while he eats. He wants to find out more about Slaine’s past.

He briefly searches for a Dr. Troyard, but the results are few. Nothing mentions the reasons Dr. Troyard went to Mars, or what he was studying. It’s all old information prior to the First Earth-Mars war. There are no official documents. Nothing mentions mars, or a son, at all.

Either he wasn’t very important, or his trip and research was a secret.

Inaho was leaning towards the latter. 

It’s like they were trying to erase his existence. But why? Many scientists left earth to study aldnoah drives; it wasn’t a secret. 

Inaho wants to ask Slaine some questions, but he doesn’t think that will go over well right now. 

Maybe Seylum will know something. 

He closes the webpage and decides to head to the Tharsis. 

He watches the maintenance crew work on his kataphrakt and the Tharsis for a little, and then logs into the simulation recordings on the tablet. 

He had seen Slaine’s training in person, but he wants to watch again with his new knowledge. He’s clicking through the videos, pausing and rewinding.

“Orange!” Slaine has appeared next to him while he was distracted, wearing his martian uniform again. 

“Why are you here?”

“Why are you here?! What are you doing?!”

“I am watching your training videos from this morning.”

“Why?! Do you enjoy seeing my failure and pain?!”

Slaine is obviously still mad at him. “No. I-”

“Right. A robot like you doesn’t even have feelings. You don’t care about anything!”

“I’m not a robot.”

Slaine laughs bitterly. “You don’t have to pretend to be my friend anymore, Inaho.”

“Slaine-”

“But at least stop torturing me! I’m not just something for you to study and analyze! I’m a person!”

“It was not my intention to-”

“That’s because you don’t think about other people’s feelings! Just because you don’t have any, doesn’t mean others don’t!”

“Fine,” Inaho sets the tablet aside. “I will stop watching it.”

“Ugh! That wasn’t the point!”

“Then what do you want me to do?”

“Nothing!” Slaine groans. “I Just-”

“ATTENTION!” A female voice says over the loud speaker. Slaine and Inaho both look upwards. “We are preparing for descent. Please make sure you are in a designated landing safe zone. Descent will begin in approximately 10 minutes. I repeat, descent will begin in 10 minutes.”

Inaho looks at Slaine, who looks back in silence. The anger seems to seep out of Slaine, leaving something else in its wake. 

Slaine's eyes are cold as he looks at Inaho. “Just leave-”

“Come on,” Inaho interrupts, heading towards the door. “This isn’t a safe zone.”

Slaine almost makes to follow, but stops and shakes his head. “No. I’ll go with the others.” He says, gesturing to the maintenance crew leaving from the other side. He walks away, leaving Inaho alone. 

It’s for the best that I’m not near him. 

But he’s not sure if he really believes that. Slaine seemed very upset with Inaho, and Inaho can’t figure out why. He needs to do some thinking. 

-

When Slaine arrives at the sleeping quarters hours later, he is feeling a bit better. He has almost put the fight with Inaho out of his mind. He met some nice maintenance people. He also got to talk to some other refugees. The calm, normal conversations managed to cheer him up. And when he sees the pile of clothes sitting on his bed, his mood continues to increase. 

One of the worst parts of the whole day was having to go back to wearing his old uniform. That, combined with the loss of Inaho’s friendship, made him feel more like he didn’t belong than ever. 

_I don’t have Inaho, but at least I have normal clothes._

Slaine checks the clothes rigorously this time, mostly to make sure Yuki didn’t give him Inaho’s clothes again. He hastily pushes the image of Inaho in his clothes out of his mind. But these clothes are bigger, and fit almost perfectly. Also, there is no jacket or sweater, so Slaine is thoroughly convinced that they are not Inaho’s. He wonders where she found them.

Slaine decides to take a walk around the ship. It’s late, and there isn’t many people still up, but he can’t sleep. He wonders where the captain decided that they should land. He envisions blue lakes, cloudy skies, and flowery hills. He hopes he gets to see the outside again. 

But the prospect is less exciting knowing it won’t be with Inaho.

_Why do I ruin any happiness I have? Maybe it’s because I don’t deserve to be happy. I’m not here to make friends anyway. I’m not here to be with Inaho. I don’t need that idiot. I’m here to protect her Highness._

That’s all. 

-

Count Saazbuam held castle Cruhteo. He even kept some of Cruhteo’s subordinates alive; Cruhteo did not inspire any kind of loyalty, they were easily convinced to join Saazbuam in exchange for their lives. So he was in a beneficial situation right now.

Even though that fool Cruhteo let the terrans escape unscathed. Saazbuam still wasn’t in a bad position. He just had to act carefully. The terrans seemed to detour from their original route. Smart, considering what had happened, but not smart enough. 

He beckoned three of Cruhteo’s – now his – men over. “I want you to track that ship. I want you to find out what the terrans plan to use Princess Asseylum for. And then Kill her. But do not kill the terran, Slaine Troyard. Bring him back to me. Complete all of these objectives or face consequences. Do you understand?”

They nod. They are all idiots but they are expendable for this mission. He needs to know what the terrans are planning. He needs them out of the Deucalion.

_Orlane. I’m sorry. I will avenge you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -So the clothing swap is the scene that I had wanted to write. It's why I strategically put off Slaine getting a uniform for so long. This scene is actually from the aldnoah.zero anthology manga, so it’s basically cannon ;) It’s really cute, so you should read it!
> 
> -This chapter was supposed to be fluffly, but it turned out really angsty! But I think this lead the way for some important developments :)
> 
> -I don't think Slaine hates his martian uniform (he liked it well enough on Inaho ;) ), he just wants to fit in.
> 
> -Asseylum has the best use of holograms! She totally did that on purpose. 
> 
> -Inaho is an idiot. 
> 
> -Thanks so much for reading and for the comments! They make my day and force me to write faster haha :)


	9. Chapter 9

Slaine wakes the next morning to find Inaho still in his bed, awake and on his tablet. He mentally groans. He is still mad at Inaho, and doesn’t really want to deal with him this morning. 

“Orange,” He says warily. “You weren’t watching me sleep again were you?”

“I was simply waiting for you to wake up so we could go to breakfast. And as I previously stated, I don’t watch you sleep.”

“Whatever…” Slaine mutters. “Why?” he voices, louder, angrier. 

“Because you are my friend.”

Slaine’s heart hurts at those words. He wishes that they were true. “Inaho I told you, you don’t have to pretend to be my friend! I don’t want you around trying to study me like something on your tablet! Just leave me alone!”

“I’m sorry about my actions yesterday. I did not know that they would cause you pain. I am not very good at being a friend, but I want to be yours. And from now on I will try to act in a way more consistent with being a friend.”

His reply surprises Slaine. It almost seemed like Inaho cared. Then he sees Inaho staring emotionlessly at his scars, hears his uncaring words, feels his avoidance of Slaine. 

_I’m not here for Inaho. I’m not here for friends. And I’m not here for happiness._

“I’m leaving,” He says and tries to walk away. But Inaho grabs his arm. Slaine stops.

And then he recalls what Yuki said about Inaho not eating his eggs, and checking the Tharsis safe for him, and watching him train. He remembers playing cards with Inaho, when Inaho had called Slaine his friend, their decoration fight, their dance, Inaho’s eyes, Inaho’s smile. He wants this. He wants Inaho. He wants this happiness.

“You can’t just search how to be a friend on your tablet.” Slaine says under his breath. “Why?” He asks again. 

“I already told you. Do you not want to me to be your friend? Because-”

“No.” Slaine surprises himself with his strong, immediate, response. “I do.” He offers Inaho a small smile. He can’t be mad at Inaho for not wanting to be around him. He can’t be mad at Inaho for being his stupid self, especially since Slaine likes Inaho’s stupid self. All Slaine wants is for Inaho to actually want to be his friend. For him not to be just an object of temporary interest to Inaho. Well, that’s not all that Slaine wants, but it’s all that he will admit to. 

“Good. Because I was going to say that you had no choice in the matter.” Inaho smiles back at Slaine. 

“Orange!”

As they walk to breakfast, Slaine feels like everything is back to the way it should be. Or maybe a little different. Maybe he and Inaho understand each other better now. 

Inaho knows about him. At least part of him. The part he didn’t want anyone to find out. He doesn’t know how to feel about that yet. He knows that Inaho is right. He is letting his past affect his future. He is being chained down by his scars. But he doesn’t know how to break free. 

-

Inaho thinks he made a good decision. He and Slaine easily fall back into their usual conversation during breakfast. 

Inaho is happy.

Slaine looks happy.

Slaine looks good in the uniform Inaho had managed to find for him. 

It is mutually beneficial. 

He decides that, no matter how much he wants to, he won’t breach the topic of Slaine’s scars. At least for now. At least until Slaine’s life is endangered by them. 

Inhao glances sideways at Slaine’s plate of eggs. He misses eggs.

“You know you can eat eggs if you want to.” Slaine says.

“No. I made a promise to you,” Inaho normally wouldn’t care much about keeping a promise that went against his rationale. He normally wouldn’t have made it in the first place. But breaking a promise with Slaine seems like it would break something else too. 

“I-it wasn’t a promise, Orange!” Slaine is flustered. Like usual.

“You are still participating,” Inaho points out. “Besides, I told you I would do something, and I intend to do it, Bat.”

“Whatever you say, Orange,” Slaine grumbles. But Inaho can tell that Slaine is happy. “You probably just realized you like other food better than eggs.” Slaine smirks.   
“No. Eggs remain the superior meal. As you should have realized by now.”

“Eating nothing but eggs is probably what made you such an idiot,” Slaine teases.

“On the contrary, eggs have been proven to increa-”

“Orange!” Slaine bumps his shoulder against Inaho’s. Inaho’s stomach flips at the contact. “You really are an idiot.” Slaine’s smile is all Inaho wants to look at.

“Inaho! Slaine!” Inko, Nina, and Calm join them. “So we landed! Nina says it’s somewhere nice!” Inko says, and Nina nods in agreement. “Don’t you want to go explore?!”

They all look at the boys expectantly.

“We can’t waste time exploring. Now is when we need to be more aware than ever. We don’t know who is following us. We need to make a plan. Not only for now, but for when we get to the UFE.”

“Inaho, you’re no fun! Seylum wants to see earth!” She turns to Slaine. “You want to too, right Slaine?”

“Er…” Inaho can see Slaine wants to. He really wants to. “Inaho’s right. We shouldn’t-”

“Actually, a few hours exploring might be beneficial. We can get a look at our surroundings and plan-”

“Yay!!” Inko and Nina cry, enveloping everyone in a giant group hug. Slaine’s smile makes it all worth it. 

-

Captain Magbaredge agreed to let them ‘scout’ the area. She probably knew they would sneak out if she didn’t give them permission, and it was better to allow it on her own terms. So they could go, provided that they all carry guns and a communicator, and that they don’t get more than 500 feet from the ship. Princess Asseylum’s saftey was their top priority she reminded them. 

The area they had landed in appeared to be a decent sized clearing, surrounded by a forest. It had a lake nearby so that they could replenish their water supply. The trees provided good cover. It was an out of the way spot, and unlikely anyone would happen upon them. 

Inaho is impressed that they managed to find such a strategic location with so little time. 

There’s an easy escape route from here, and anyone chasing would be hindered by the trees. If they come from above we can just…

Inaho is interrupted by a bump. It’s Inko.

“You’re strategizing again aren’t you?” She doesn’t sound as annoyed with him as usual. 

“That’s what we’re out here for.”

“Just enjoy the outdoors will you!”

Inaho had never really ‘enjoyed’ the outdoors. He appreciated it for what it was, but nothing more. 

However, watching Slaine laugh with Asseylum, blue eyes shining brightly at the world around him, Inaho thought maybe he could enjoy the outdoors.

Something tugs at his heart as he watches Asseylum bend down to pick a flower and tuck it into Slaine’s hair. Slaine sputters and reddens, but leaves it there.

Inko gives Inaho a look.

“The world is so big isn’t it, Slaine!” 

“Yes it is, your highness.”

“Once I can tell everyone that I am alive, there will be peace! Then we can come here whenever we want!” She twirls around, arms reaching for the sky. 

Inaho knows it won’t be that simple, but he doesn’t say anything. Seylum knows little about how the world works. There are many more battles to fight before this war is over, even when Seylum is revealed to be alive. And there will be more wars after this one, he knows. 

It’s not like Inaho likes war. It’s just something inevitable. There will always be war as long as there are humans. Seylum didn’t understand that. She wanted everybody to be happy and live together in peace. He respected her vision, but it would never happen. 

“Your highness!” Eddelrittuo cries. 

Seylum has kicked off her shoes and is wading into a small, clear, pond. 

“Oh! It feels so good!” She says happily. At her insistence, the others waste no time also discarding their shoes and stepping into the pond. Inaho stays on the shore and watches. 

“Come on, Orange,” Slaine says to him. “Get in.”

“Yeah!”,“Come on, Inaho!” the others chorus. 

He shakes his head.

And water splashes him in the face. 

He stands there for a moment, water dripping off his hair and face onto his clothes, looking at Slaine’s mischievous grin. 

“That was a declaration of war, Bat,” Inaho says, and proceeds to get in and retaliate. 

Slaine throws more water back at Inaho, and some hits Inko, who squeals and splashes Inaho.

“Hey. That wasn’t me.”

“I know.” She winks at Slaine and they both send water flying towards Inaho together. And then it becomes an actual battle. Nina joins Slaine and Inko against Inaho, Asseylum, Calm and Eddelrittuo. 

Eddelrittuo uses her body to try and protect Seylum from the water, but she is too small of a human shield to do much good. 

Slaine and Inko make a good team against Inaho, avoiding his attacks and counter attacking in sync. 

Soon everyone is shrieking and soaking wet. Water is flying everywhere. Inko, Slaine and Nina eventually surrender after a well-executed attack has them fall completely into the water.

Asseylum and Calm cheer in success as they all file out of the water to dry in the sun. Eddelrittuo is desperately trying to wring out Asseylum’s clothes. 

Slaine’s uniform is clinging to him, water drops hang from his wet hair and drip down his face. He smiles widely at Inaho and Inaho doesn’t know how he had ever lived without seeing this sight. He can’t remember why he ever thought it was a good idea to avoid Slaine in the first place. 

Slaine lays down in the grass, and Inaho sits down next to him. 

“Earth is so different than I remember it,” Slaine says, eyes closed. “I wish we could stay here forever.”

The idea is silly and naïve; something that Asseylum would say. But there’s a difference between wishing and believing it was possible. That was the difference between Slaine and Asseylum. Knowing a perfect world couldn’t exist didn’t stop him from dreaming about it. 

“When did you leave earth?” Now might be Inaho’s best chance to find out about Slaine’s mysterious past.

Slaine opens his eyes. “In 2009, with my father.”

“Earth is relatively the same now as it was back then,” Inaho states.

Slaine sighs. “I know. But I never really got to see it back then. I have no fond memories of it. To me it was a dark room. I saw more of earth from pictures while teaching Princess Asseylum than I did in person.” Slaine’s eyes go distant. “My father would leave me alone for days. And when he was home, he would ignore me. I barely even went outside.”

“Your mother?”

“I don’t know. He never said anything, and I never asked.”

“Why did he go to mars?” 

“To study aldnoah. You know that.”

“Yes, but why? What about it was he studying?”

Slaine sits up, brow furrowed. “I don’t know. He never told me anything. Why all the questions?” He says defensively. 

“I am just curious as to why-”

“Are you treating me like a research topic again? My past isn’t something for you to study!”

Inaho braces himself for another fight. He doesn’t want Slaine angry at him again. 

_How do I always say the wrong thing?_

“I’m not.” Inaho explains. Slaine’s eyes are angry. “I’m-”

A shot rings out, followed by a scream, and two more shots.

Slaine and Inaho jump up, all arguments forgotten. 

“Where is everyone?!” Slaine asks, looking at the empty area around them.

Inaho doesn’t know, so he doesn’t waste time answering. He starts running towards the woods, where the shots and scream came from. They both run, weaving though trees, listening for any sounds. 

Three shots ring out in succession. Inaho alters his course to the right, in the direction of the noise. 

He looks back to make sure Slaine is following, and a shot explodes off the tree next to him. 

“Get down,” He tells Slaine, and they both fall to the ground. Inaho has his gun out in front of him, and Slaine takes his out as well. Inaho gestures with his head for Slaine to move. Slaine starts crawling to the left and out of Inaho’s sight. Someone needs to make sure Princess Asseylum is safe. He trusts that’s what Slaine will do.  
Inaho stays down until he spots a pair of legs moving cautiously through the trees. 

He knows how to conceal the noise of his steps. He is a trained soldier. 

Inaho silently gets up and places himself strategically next to a tree. He can’t get a clear shot on the man. There are too many trees in the way. If he shoots and misses the man will know exactly where he is. But if he stays here, he will eventually be found anyway.

Inaho takes a shot at a tree behind and to the left of the man’s location, hoping it would cause the soldier to think it came from the right, giving Inaho a clearer shot. It doesn’t work. The feet pause, and then disappear to the right. 

Inaho glimpses an unfamiliar uniform. He must be a martian solider. Here for Asseylum. How many are there? 

The forest is silent. There have been no shots. That could be a good thing, or a bad thing. 

Inaho needs to protect Asseylum and the others. Inaho needs to make sure Slaine is ok. 

_I can head to the left and circle back around…_

A gun barrel is pressed to the back of his head. 

_How? I didn’t see or hear him._

Inaho twists, and tries to grab the arm holding the gun, but his opponent is much faster and lighter than he had anticipated. And Inaho can’t beat a trained soldier in hand to hand combat. He ends up with his arms twisted behind his back and the gun at his temple. His own gun was dropped in the scuffle and is nowhere to be seen.

“Where is the martian princess, terran?”

_Oh. It’s a woman. That’s why I miscalculated their height and mass. At least she doesn’t know where Seylum is._

Inaho remains silent. 

_If I can just spot my gun, I can twist away, get it, and shoot her before she can shoot me._

But he can’t see it anywhere. The gun presses harder into his temple. 

“Tell me now,” She says. Inaho remains silent, looking. “Three…”

He can’t find it. 

“Two…”

She’s going to shoot him. He’s going to have to make a risky move. He can try to take her gun from her without her shooting him. It will probably fail. 

“One-”

“Stop!” Slaine appears in front of the women, point his gun at her face. 

Why is he here? Why didn’t he go after Seylum?

Her eyes widen, but she takes no action. “Slaine Troyard!” She says, and lowers her gun from Inaho’s head to her side. “We were ordered to bring you back to mars. Now, please come with me.” She sounds relieved. 

_Now, while she’s distracted. I can disarm her and hopefully subdue-_

Her head jerks violently forward. Blood splatters on Inaho’s face. His ears are ringing from the shot. Before he can comprehend what happened, three more shorts fire, destroying her face. The gun slips from her hand, and three more shots are fired into her chest as she falls to the floor, dead. 

Slaine has moved in front of her. Gun held steady, still ready to shoot even though the woman is long dead. His eyes are hard when he looks at Inaho.

There’s no time to talk. They need to find the others. They leave her body and run forward. They come to a clearing and Slaine lets out a huge sigh. 

Eddelrittuo is consoling a crying Asseylum. Nina, Inko and Calm have two men pinned face down with guns to the back of their heads. 

“What happened?!” Slaine asks.

Seylum looks up, teary eyed. “Slaine! Inaho! Thank goodness!” She says through her tears. “I thought you might be dead!” 

“I told her you wouldn’t die that easily,” Inko says to the boys. “They snuck up on us in the woods. They shot at Seylum, but I think they weren’t used to the trees. And they seemed deadest on killing Seylum. They didn’t care about us at all! So we were able to beat them,” She glares at the men. “They shouldn’t underestimate us.”

“Now we need to decide what to do with them,” Calm says, jabbing his gun to the man’s head. 

“We have already contacted Captain Magbaredge,” Nina says, “She should be here soon.”

“We will bring them in for questioning,” Inaho wants some answers from the men. They could have valuable martian intel. He’s never gotten to talk to a martian who was supporting of the assassination of Asseylum. Rayet could hardly be counted. She hated martians more than anyone on board. He wants to hear the other side’s perspective on the war and their motivations. Maybe it would give him some useful insight.

“Hey!” Calm yells, thrusting his gun harder to his man’s head. Calm turns to Inaho. “He went limp!”

“Him too!” Nina yells.

Inaho gestures for Calm to release the man. Calm keeps his gun pointed at the man’s back. Inaho flips the man over. Dead eyes stare up at Inaho.   
Calm’s mouth drops open, his eyes wide. “I didn’t hit him that hard!”

“No,” Inaho says, examining the body, and confirming Nina’s prisoner was also dead. “It was most likely cyanide capsules in their mouths. They killed themselves to prevent from being interrogated.”

“Why?” Asseylum wails. “Why would they do that? They are martian! Why would they do this?”

“That’s what we need to figure out,” Inaho says.

“I-I recognize these men. They were with Count Cruhteo,” Slaine says quietly.

“So Count Cruhteo sent them here. But why were they trying to kill Seylum? We confirmed that he was not part of the assassination attempt.”

“He could have been lying,” Slaine says slowly. “Or decided to join in after finding out about it.”

Inaho nods distantly. Something doesn’t seem right. “Why did they want you then?”

“I-I don’t know. Maybe Count Cruhteo changed his mind about killing me. He probably still wants to question me,” Slaine is stiff and emotionless as he says it.

“Count Cruhteo always seemed so nice…” Seylum says sadly. She really must have not known about Slaine’s treatment. Was is naivety? Or did she just not want to see it?

“What do we do with the bodies?” Calm asks, having stepped far away from the dead men.

“Captain Magbaredge will be here soon. She’ll tell us what to do.” Inko answers.

“Man, this was a bad day,” Calm says dejectedly, rubbing his head. They all nod somberly. 

“Wait! What happened to the man chasing you?” Inko asks.

Inaho glances at Slaine, who is staring pointedly straight ahead. “It was actually a woman. She had a gun to my head and Slaine shot her to prevent her from killing me.”

He doesn’t mention the fact that her gun had already dropped. Or the way Slaine had practically unloaded his whole clip into her even though she was dead from the first shot. Or Slaine’s empty eyes.

“Wow, Slaine! You saved Inaho again!” Inko grins. “It’s lucky you’re here!”

Slaine nods distantly. The group falls silent until Captain Magbaredge arrives a few minutes later with reinforcements. Inko and Inaho quickly explain what happened. 

Captain Magbaredge rubs her eyes. “I guess this would have happened sooner or later.”

Yuki, who silently listened to the whole story pulls Inaho into a crushing hug. “Thank you, Slaine!” 

Inaho escapes from her grip and questions, and while the other are busy with the bodies, Inaho says quietly to Captain Magbaregde, “The other body is in the woods.”

She must catch something in his voice, because she grabs equipment and follows him alone. When she sees the woman’s body covered on the forest floor, covered in blood and riddled with holes, she gives Inaho a sharp look. But she doesn’t say anything as she covers the body with a sheet. 

“I’ll take care of it. Go and clean up.”

Inaho doesn’t argue. Everyone else is already back on the ship when Inaho arrives, so he heads straight to the shower. He finishes quickly, washing the blood off of his face and hair. 

He needs to find Slaine.

In the dining hall he finds Yuki. “Yuki, do you know where Slaine is?” he asks.

“No,” She says through a mouthful of food. “I’m so glad you have such a good friend! You need to be more careful, Nao!” 

Inaho nods in agreement and leaves before she can lecture him on the importance of his personal safety. 

In Dr. Yagari’s office he finds Seylum and Eddelrittuo. “Seylum, have you seen Slaine?”

“No,” She says, getting a scrapped knee patched up. “But he needs to come in to get checked out! Dr. Yagarai just showed me this new plant that is good for cuts!” 

Inaho nods and leaves before she can lecture him on her knowledge of medicine. 

In the training room he finds Inko. “Inko, do you know where Slaine would be?”

“No,” She says, looking at something on a tablet. “But I think you should,” She smirks. “He saved your life again! And I know you consider him your friend. And you don’t care about making friends – I would know -, so you must really like him! Which means you know a significant amount about him. More than any of us do, Inaho.”

Inaho nods and leaves before she can see the emotions in his eyes. 

He finds Slaine outside. He is sitting against the side of the ship, staring at the ground. 

Inaho sits next to him, careful to leave a distance between them. “Bat.”

Slaine doesn’t look up. “Orange.”

They are quiet for a while. The air gets cooler, the sky gets darker. 

“I shot her,” Slaine says, still not looking at Inaho.

“Yes.”

“She lowered her gun and I still shot her.”

Inaho nods. 

Slaine continues. “I don’t feel guilty. I would do it again.” He finally looks up at the sky. “I shot someone else once before, too. I knew him. He was unarmed. He told me he was involved in Princess Asseylum’s assassination attempt and I unloaded my whole clip into him. I don’t feel bad about it.”

“This is war,” Inaho says simply.

“I know! I know people are going to die! I know I will have to kill people, but shouldn’t I feel bad about it?!”

Inaho doesn’t know. He doesn’t have any qualms about killing. He doesn’t mourn the deaths. But he has never shot an unarmed enemy in the face, multiple times, before either. 

“What’s the point of no return? When do I cross a line that I can’t come back from?” Slaine asks. 

Inaho remembers Slaine’s eyes as he shot the woman. Blue eyes that were usually so full of joy when he smiled at Inhao, or embarrassment when his face turned red, or sadness when Inaho wouldn’t trust him, or anger when Inaho saw his scars, or exasperation when Inaho said something stupid, or mischief when they played in the water. Eyes that held so many different emotions. They were cold and empty. 

He turns towards Slaine. “You won’t cross it,” Inaho says firmly 

Slaine faces him “How do you know?!” He demands.

“I won’t let you.”

Slaine stares at Inaho. “Why do I even have to fight in this war? I should take Princess Asseylum and run. We should all run.”

“We were made for war. We are too smart, too skilled, to do anything else. Our minds are wired for it.” Inaho knows Slaine has already realized it. “We can’t escape it. We were born for it. ” Inaho means for his words to be helpful. If Slaine realizes that he never really had a choice, he can’t feel bad about the actions he takes.

“But Inko, Nina, Calm…”

“Yes. They could have had normal lives. But they are here anyway.”

Slaine sighs. “Princess Asseylum revealing she’s alive isn’t going to help.”

“No,” Inaho agrees. 

“She wants this war to end so badly. She just wants to enjoy the beauty of the earth. I wish I could give her want she wants,” Slaine says. Inaho’s heart pangs. Slaine really cares for her. “I would teach her for hours about earth. She loves it.”

“Wrongly.”

“What?”

“You taught her wrong.”

“What are you talking about, Orange?!”

“She thought that the sky is blue because of refracted light. She told me you taught her that. The sky is blue due to Reyleigh scattering.”

“W-what? That can’t-”

Inaho pulls out his tablet. “Would you like me to show you?”

“No! I don’t want to see your stupid tablet!”

“At least it knows the difference between diffraction and scattering.”

“Orange!” Slaine tackles and pins Inaho to the ground. 

“You can’t be expected to know everything,” Inaho states. “Because you don’t eat enough eggs.” He says seriously, then smiles at Slaine above him.

“Ugh! You’re so frustrating!” But Slaine is smiling a little, too.

Inaho reaches up and lightly touches Slaine’s cheek. “You’re hurt, Bat,” He says, running his thumb carefully under the cut on Slaine’s face. 

_This is dangerous._

Slaine doesn’t pull away. “I must have run into some tree branches,” He mumbles. 

Inaho doesn’t remove his hand. He stares up into Slaine’s eyes. “You should at least get it disinfected. Seylum wants you to go to get checked out anyway, she asked me to tell you,” Inaho knows Slaine will be eager to go to Seylum.

“It’s fine,” He says, not moving. “I’ve had worse.”

“Slaine-”

“My only family is here,” Slaine says. “If I have to fight, I will fight to protect it.”

Inaho isn’t sure what to do with the hint of coldness in Slaine’s voice, or the implications of that statement. The vision of Slaine’s empty eyes rises up to meet him again.

A lightness reenters Slaine’s voice. “Come on, it’s getting dark. We shouldn’t be out here,” He says, getting up and extending his hand to help Inaho up.

They walk back to the ship, and despite Slaine’s protests, Inaho makes him go to Dr. Yagarai’s office. Asseylum is delighted to see him, and Slaine smiles and chats easily with her. Slaine winces as Dr. Yagarai disinfects the small cut. He refuses the bandaid that Dr. Yagarai hold out to him. But when Seylum tells him that he should wear it, he hesitantly puts it on. 

It looks cute. 

Inaho is overcome with a need to touch Slaine’s face again. As they walk side by side, his hand moves as if by its own. Inaho stops himself and becomes aware of how tired he actually is. He’s slept maybe four hours in the past two days. He’s finally feeling the effects of little food and sleep deprivation. 

Inaho focuses on the world around him again, and realizes Slaine had been talking to him. 

“Inaho?” Slaine nudges him gently. Slaine must have noticed something’s off, because he didn’t get offended like he normally would when Inaho wasn’t listening to him.

“I need food. And to sleep. I’ll meet with you tomorrow.”

Slaine narrows his eyes. “You didn’t sleep in the room last night. Or the night before. Why were you avoiding me?!”

It’s funny that it’s taken Slaine this long to ask that question. Inaho answers as truthfully as possible. “Because I thought it would be beneficial. However, I was mistaken.”

“Beneficial?! How?! Because I’m a waste of your time…”

“No, I also thought it would be beneficial for you,” Inaho feels lightheaded. 

“You can’t just decide that for other people!” but Slaine softens. “Let’s go get something to eat.”

“I can go by myself.”

“No you can’t.”

“I am perfectly capable of-”

“No you’re not. Besides, if you go alone, you might think of another stupid idea, which is obviously what happens when you spend too much time alone. Apparently I need to be there to stop you from being an idiot all of the time.” 

Inaho smiles. Slaine always does inform Inaho when he is doing something he finds stupid. Inaho has a huge list of what he ‘can’t just’ do. Slaine keeps him grounded. And he’s fine with Slaine being around him. More than fine. He can control his feelings. He can ignore them and still have Slaine as a friend. Inaho breifly wonders if he is agreeing out of a selfish desire to be near Slaine. 

No, it’s a good plan, it will work. He can be friends with Slaine and his feelings will never be known. It will work. He has to make sure Slaine doesn’t lose himself in this war. Slaine has to make Inaho think more emotionally. It will work.

They quickly eat whatever they could find leftover from the day and head to sleep. 

“Goodnight, Slaine.”

“Goodnight, Inaho. And you better actually sleep. If I wake up and you’re not here again…”

“I will.”

Slaine ‘hmphs’ and turns over in his bed. The last thing Inaho sees before his eyes drift closed is blonde hair nuzzled into blankets. Inaho falls asleep with a smile on his face. 

It will work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -It will totally work ;)
> 
> -I couldn't bare to write Inaho avoiding Slaine anymore, so they quickly made up, even though I might have wanted it to go on for longer.
> 
> -Slaine is very different when faces with someone who would hurt someone he loves (Like sir Trilliam, Count Saazbuam and Inaho in the anime). I wanted to start exploring that darker side of him.
> 
> -I hope this was a good chapter! I already have most of the next two written, so they should be up soon! :) There are a few more cute scenes I need to write, but I feel like things are going to take a darker turn after that. 
> 
> -Thanks for reading and comments! :) They always make my day!


	10. Chapter 10

“We will be relocating to the United Earth Headquarters immediately,” Captain Magbaregde says. Inko, Yuki, Slaine and Inaho are gathered in her office. “We succeeded in drawing out those who were following us. We found their ships, and discovered no tracking equipment. They must have been monitoring us since our last battle, using radar. We can’t risk staying here any longer now that they know we are here. They will send reinforcements. But we can scramble the single around the Deucalian. So if we move fast enough, they won’t be able to find us.” 

“So Seylum can finally announce that she is alive!” Inko says.

“Yes. That is the plan.”

“The United Earth Headquarters is heavily protected and has plenty of equipment. Everyone will be safe!” Yuki says happily.

Slaine knows she must be thinking that they won’t have to fight anymore. He wishes it was true. Inko grins, but Inaho and Captain Magbaregde remain somber. They know.

“When will we arrive?” Inaho asks. 

“Sometime tonight, if all goes well. I expect you will all manage to make yourselves useful until then,” Captain Magbaredge says sternly. Slaine lowers his head a little in shame. They hadn’t done much to help lately. It seems as though they just cause more trouble. 

Inko grabs Inaho and Slaine’s arms and pulls them towards the door. “Of course we will!” Slaine is a little apprehensive at how brightly she says it and at her large smile as she doesn’t release the grip on their arms. Capatain Magbaredge sighs, and starts talking with Yuki about alerting the refugees aboard. 

“What exactly are we doing…?” Slaine asks Inko once they are away from the captain’s room. 

“You’re going to help with the food!” She says, depositing them in the kitchen. “Everyone else is busy so you need to clean the kitchen and organize the food.” She waves as she leaves the room.

“Wait! Where are you going?” Slaine yells after her.

“I think you two can handle this. I have other stuff to do.”

“Uh…”

“I trust you,” She winks and is gone.

Slaine turns around to find Inaho putting on a pink apron. “W-what are you doing?!”

“It will keep my uniform clean,” Inaho finishes tying it around his waist. This is going to be bad for Slaine’s health, he already knows.

He groans and starts wiping down the counters. They succeed in getting the kitchen relatively clean, and begin to open cabinets and the fridge to organize the food. 

Inaho creates different piles. Slaine carefully balances cans of corn in his arms over to the canned goods section. His hips hits the corner of a counter, the mound in  
his arms begins to wobble dangerously. He moves quickly to re-balance his cans, and succeeds in making it to the correct pile without incident. He sighs in relief. That last thing he wants is a disaster.

Pretty soon, the fridge is almost clean. They remove some jugs of milk, and both stare at what was hidden behind.

“Is that…?”

“Inko’s cake.”

Sure enough, the leftovers from the cake Nina and Inko created was sitting in the back of the fridge. It still looks pretty good, if a bit stale. Slaine regrets that he never got to try any at the party.

“Why’s it in the fridge?”

Inaho shrugs and takes it out and sets it on a counter. There’s not really a pile for it, so they leave it there and begin working on cleaning the rest of the kitchen.

“You’re not scrubbing hard enough.”

“I think I know how to clean better than you, Orange!"

“There’s still cake on your counter, Bat.”

“That’s because you put the cake on it!” And sure enough, the cake they had taken out of the fridge had deposited crumbs and frosting on the counter Slaine was working on. 

“Still, you’re not cleaning it well enough.”

“Ugh! You try cleaning up cake then!” Slaine says and picks up the cake and slams it onto Inaho’s counter, leaving a large mess of crumbs and frosting in its wake.

Inaho doesn’t say anything and puts the cake back on Slaine’s counter. The cake brushes against Slaine’s shirt in the process, getting some bright pink frosting on it. Slaine narrows his eyes at Inaho, whose eyes issue a challenge. 

Slaine takes some frosting in his hand and wipes it on Inaho’s uniform. “Your apron didn’t help much,” 

Face still blank, Inaho takes a handful of cake and smashes it into the side of Slaine’s smirking face. 

“Inaho!” Slaine cries, hair and face coated in frosting and cake. It’s Inaho’s turn to smile now, but the smile drops off his face when Slaine grabs a huge handful of cake. Inaho backs away to the other side of the room. 

Slaine takes aim, and hurls the cake at Inaho’s head. Inaho manages to duck the projectile and the cake slams into the wall, leaving a big pink starburst. “Your aim is bad,” Inaho says. 

Slaine growls and throws another piece of cake. This Inaho also manages to dodge this one. And the next. 

But on Slaine’s fourth throw, the cake clips Inaho’s hair, leaving it sticky and pink. Inaho reaches up to touch his hair. “You got me,” he says, walking over to Slaine. 

Does Inaho really think Slaine is satisfied with Inaho barely has any cake on him, when half of Slaine’s face is covered in it? Apparently so, because he is still coming closer. 

Slaine takes another handful of cake and rushes at Inaho, intending to end this once and for all. Inaho’s eyes widen, and he slips past Slaine to stand next to the cake.

They face off, cake ready to fly in both of their hands. 

“Bat.”

“Orange.”

Inaho throws his cake at Slaine, who throws his back at the same time. Inaho’s lands with a thump on Slaine’s chest, and Slaine’s hits Inaho’s forehead and slides down over his face. 

Inaho cracks a smile, Slaine starts laughing and they both lunge for the cake on the counter to continue their battle. 

“What are you doing?!” Inko yells, as she walks in to find the room splattered with cake, and Inaho in the process of shoving cake into Slaine’s face. She throws her hands up. “I don’t even want to know! I can’t leave you two alone anywhere without you destroying it! Just clean it up!” She says, and leaves again. 

They look at each other and then the messy kitchen that they had just cleaned. 

Slaine groans. “How are we ever supposed to clean this up?”

“You can’t, because you don’t scrub hard enough.”

“We’ll see if you can do any better! I’ll get this side clean before yours!”

They both start scrubbing furiously, trying to beat the other. The kitchen is once again spotless in record time. The boys, both still covered in cake, slump against the wall in exhaustion. 

“I won, Bat.”

“You did not, Orange!” But Slaine’s too tired to do anything but smile at Inaho’s cake covered face.

-

“What’s going to happen once we head to the headquarters?” Nina asks Captain Magbaredge. Nina is steadily piloting the ship on the directed course. They are on schedule to reach the UFE late that night.

“We will obey their orders,” Captain Magbardge replies. 

“But the headquarters is secret, right? No one will find us there?” Nina questions.

“Yes, that is supposed to be true.”

“Then Princess Asseylum can tell Vers that she is alive and the war can end!” 

If only it would be that easy. Captain Magbaredge continues to be surprised at how naïve everyone is. She would put it off on them just being kids, but Kaizuka Junior and Slaine Troyard seemed to be able to fully grasp the true situation. Also, Warrant Officer Kaizuka and Mizusaki were just as blind as Nina. But she’s jealous that they managed to keep their hope throughout all of this. 

She feels a pang of sorrow that those two boys had lost their innocence in this war; that they could no longer believed in peace and were so cynical about the world. But then she decides that Slaine Troyard’s naivety had probably been destroyed long before he came to her ship. She could tell he had a dark past. But it wasn’t her place to pry. And Inaho… she doubts he ever had unrealistic ideals about the world. 

Those boys were so different. She could tell Slaine is explosive and passionate, ruled by his emotions. But he respected his superiors, which is more than she could say about Kaizuka Junior. Inaho, on the other hand, is calm and analytical. She doesn’t know if she’s ever seen him smile. But he is very useful in battle. He is the perfect soldier, aside from his tendency to disobey orders, he is almost robotic on the battlefield. 

She appreciates him, but she’s scared of what he will do. He would easily sacrifice men if it helped achieve his goal. She didn’t know if she could support that. He didn’t act out of emotions or loyalty. He judges the situation and does what will most likely ensure his survival. Just because that has always been beneficial to them so far doesn’t mean it will always be. Is this war taking away any humanity he had in him?

But Slaine Troyard… Inaho was easy to understand. He was calculating, a solvable equation. She could reason out what Inaho would likely do, by setting aside her own emotions and thinking like him. It scared her, what she would be able to do if she had no feelings, what Inaho was probably capable of doing. 

Troyard scared her in a different way. That body in the woods. She didn’t know what went down in that forest, but she knew that that woman was shot many more times than necessary. That she was purposefully shot in places meant to kill, rather than disable. That she was shot directly in the face, three times, at close range. Inaho would have shot her leg if possible, or a single, clean headshot if necessary. Anyone else would have probably aimed for the chest, and done so reluctantly.  
But Troyard… She couldn’t understand it. It was brutal, it was inhumane. 

She is scared of what Inaho is capable of doing. But she is more scared of Slaine Troyard himself. 

Inaho fights to live. He does what he does to protect himself. Slaine seemed to have little value on his own life. He would easily throw it away for someone he thinks deserves to live more than he does. He fights for the princess.

No matter what, they were going to be the boys that helped end this war. Would people would talk about the emotionless boy who was willing to sacrifice anyone, and the boy who took joy in killing? Was that to be their role in history?

Not much scared her. But these boys brought out her fear. She feared for them. She feared for their future, for what the war was making them into.  
But, somehow, she gets the sense that the boys are good for each other. They are two sides of the same coin. They might be able to heal each other, if given the chance. 

She fears they will never get that chance. She has a sense that everything is about to get worse. They’re just boys. They should be in school, learning and enjoying life, making friends; they shouldn’t have to live this life. 

But they’re not just boys. Not anymore. 

“I hope so,” She tells Nina. For everyone’s sake.

-

Inko walks to the training room after lunch to find Slaine and Inaho training. She sighs and hopes that they at least cleaned up the kitchen before coming here. Why did they always make such a mess?

It was a mystery to her what happened when those two were together. Something changed in them. She could see actual emotion in Inaho’s face, and she could feel the waves of sadness that usually surrounded Slaine disappear. 

Something was going on. She was pretty sure that Slaine liked Inaho. He wasn’t very good at hiding it. Luckily - or unluckily - for him, Inaho was an idiot. She couldn’t make out Inaho’s feelings for Slaine at all though. It was rare for Inaho to spend so much time with someone, and sometimes he gets a look on his face she’s never seen before. But then he says something uncaring or callous, something so Inaho-like. And she can’t imagine him liking anyone that way. 

She feels so much better since she let go of Inaho. She is happy, and free to investigate into the mystery that is Inaho and Slaine. She feels like a detective, she should get a secret notebook to write down her observations.

_07:07 PM: Inaho looks at Slaine when he’s not looking. Looks away when Slaine looks at him, just as emotionless as always._

_07:11 PM: Slaine looks at Inaho when he’s not looking. Blushes and looks away when Inaho looks at him._

_8:00 PM -11:00 PM: Slaine and Inaho destroy kitchen._

She grins to herself. This is the most fun she’s had since the war started. She’s determined to get to the bottom of this. 

“That was worse than me!” Slaine says happily. It seems as though Inaho is in the Tharsis, practicing. 

“That was my first try,” Inaho’s voice says through Slaine’s headset. 

“So! You told me to get out so you could show me how it’s done! You didn’t show me anything!”

“I underestimated how different the controls would be.”

“Obviously!”

“This time I will-”

“Just admit it, Orange! I’m better than you!”

“There has not been a good basis for comparison so far, Bat.”

Their nicknames for each other were another mystery. She’s sure it made sense to them, but they sounded ridiculous to everyone else. She never would have thought that Inaho would give someone a nickname. More proof that Slaine brought out something different in Inaho. In fact, just the way Inaho interacted with Slaine in general showed how Slaine got to him. Who else could get Inaho to get in a food fight? No one.

“Fine!” Slaine says, determined. 

Uh oh. Apparently they decided to switch while she was thinking. She ducks behind a corner as Inaho comes out of the kataphrakt and takes Slaine’s place with the tablet and headset. 

Inaho doesn’t say anything for a while, and she doesn’t hear anything from Slaine’s end either. She’s getting curious, so she quietly grabs another tablet and logs into the simulation feed. 

She watches for a little bit. Slaine...isn’t doing great. She can’t fathom why. He proved himself to be a skilled fighter, almost on Inaho’s level. And he had grown up a martian soldier, he should be used to the martian kataphrakt. So why was he doing so badly? And even weirder, why wasn’t Inaho criticizing him?

She knew firsthand that Inaho was very blunt about people’s performances. In school he would always be quick to point out her mistakes and tell her how bad she was doing, even when she yelled at him to stop. 

Slaine finally manages to beat the simple simulation. “Again,” he says. 

“Ok,” Inaho replies, no comment on Slaine’s performance. Why?

A few minutes later she hears Slaine’s groan of frustration.

“You need to focus on both the future and the present,” Inaho says, almost gently. 

“I know,” Slaine sighs. 

She doesn’t know why they are still training so hard. They will be arrive at the United Earth Headquarters tonight. Then they can just be refugees again! They shouldn’t have to fight anymore. She supposes that Inaho has always taken his training seriously, even in school before the war. And Slaine was an actual soldier. Just on the opposite side… 

But still, they should be thinking of games to play and things to do once they got to the headquarters! Not preparing for war. 

She watches Slaine’s movements become increasingly erratic. He is getting tired and upset. It’s obvious the session has ceased being beneficial. The boys call it quits and shut everything down. They walk side by side, saying things that Inko can’t catch. 

Are they walking closer together than usual? What is that? 7, 8 inches apart? She wishes that she had a ruler. That would make excellent data for her nonexistent secret journal. 

_What is wrong with me? I’m acting like some kind of stalker!_

She decides that she’s just giddy in anticipation over being able to have a normal life again. Besides, this can only help those two idiots. Maybe she should get Nina involved…

“Inko.”

She jumps. Inaho and Slaine are looking at her strangely. How did she not notice them come over here? She knows she must look crazy, crouched behind a corner, holding a tablet, staring into space. 

“Ah! Inaho! Slaine!” 

“What are you doing?” Inaho asks.

“Er… Uh… I was just cleaning the tablets!” She holds up the one in her hands and grimaces at the obvious smudges on it. 

“That’s not very clean,” Inaho notes.

Inko flushes. “Well, that’s why I’m cleaning it, obviously!” She hopes that they don’t see her lack of cleaning supplies. 

Inaho looks like he’s about to question further, and Inko debates on making a run for it. 

But Slaine interjects first. “At least she can clean something without making it dirtier, Orange!”

“You started it, Bat.”

“You’re the one who made me clean the cake counter and then told me I wasn’t doing it well enough!”

“If you had been doing a satisfactory job, I wouldn’t have-”

“Uh! Ok!” Inko says, thankful their argument has distracted them from her. “I’m going to go see if Nina needs anything! We should be landing soon!” She puts the tablet back and makes her escape. She grins at her success. She was a good secret agent. 

“She didn’t even clean it,” She hears Inaho say. She winces. 

“You can’t just clean it with your shirt!” Slaine yells. 

Is Inaho trying to clean the tablet? She hears the clunking of tablets. 

“She didn’t clean any of them. They need to be cleaned.”

“Well you shouldn’t be the one to do it! You’ll ruin it! Give it to me.”

“No.”

“Yes! You don’t even clean your own tablet!”

“I do.”

“Not that I’ve ever seen!”

“Just because you haven’t seen me do it, doesn’t mean-”

“That thing is attached to you! I see it constantly! And it’s always dirty!” Slaine grunts. Inko imagines he is trying to take the tablet from Inaho and Inaho isn’t letting go. 

She hears a loud crash. 

“Orange!” 

Inko hurries away. She is sure that the room will be destroyed in a few minutes, and she doesn’t want any part of it. Maybe she isn’t cut out for the spy life after all…

-

“This is the battleship Deucalion. HQ requesting docking clearance,” Captain Magbaredge says over the speaker.

“Welcome, Deucalion. Clearance granted. Set down in dock number 6,” The scratchy voice replies. 

“Deucalion acknowledged,” she says.

“We finally made it…” Nina says happily, directing the plane to the correct area. 

“United Earth Headquarters…” Mizusaki says. 

Captain Magbaredge turns on her loud speaker. “Attention. We have successfully arrived at the United Earth Headquarters. Please, remain on the ship for tonight. Tomorrow you will be given rooms and assignments. You will be protected here, with the other refugees,” she hopes that is true. “So please, stay on the ship, and gather your belongings. Tomorrow you reach your destination. Thank you.”

She clicks off the speaker. Nina and Mizusaki are grinning. She imagines that the refugees are equally happy to have arrived. 

But it’s not over. At least not for some of us. 

How will everyone at HQ react to the martian princes? Hopefully not like Areash did. Areash…What will they do with her? Transfer her to another cell? Is she to spend her life in prison because of a mistake she made out of misplaced hatred?

Rayet may be the person aboard this ship that she understands the most. While she holds no extreme hatred for martians, she too has lost family to a war fighting them. She too had to look at the person responsible for her family’s death. The only difference between them was that Rayet’s pain was a lot fresher and she was a lot younger. 

Captain Magbaredge fully understood why the girl did what she did. It wasn’t intended to be murder. It was simply her acting out on all the pain and grief and anger that had built up. Seeing the princess every day, seeing the princess she believed was responsible for her father’s death be accepted by everyone. It snapped something inside of her. The girl wasn’t dangerous. She was just a girl destroyed by war. She didn’t deserve to be locked away. 

But Captain Magbaredge’s hands were tied. There would be outrage if she was released. Especially from Slaine Troyard. 

He would want to kill her. 

He probably would kill her. 

And it not, then Inaho would want to use her, like a piece in his chess game. He said as much in the bathroom that day.

Maybe she was safer in a cell…

“Touchdown in 3…2….1…” Nina says, as the ship hits the floor. “Ship is down. Now mooring.”

“I suppose this means out voyage is over, too,” Mizusaki says.

“Yes, for now.”

“For now, ma’am?” 

She turns towards her XO. “If we keep the ship, what will the enemy do?” 

It’s not over yet.

-

Slaine jerks awake from a particular recurring dream he has. He’s used to it, and turns over to go back to sleep. Except a glowing light catches his attention. Inaho is sitting up in bed, face illuminated by his tablet. Slaine knows it’s late. Inaho should be asleep.

“Orange,” Slaine hisses, careful not to wake anyone else. 

Inaho looks up from his tablet. “What?”

“Why are you still awake?!”

“I am researching.”

“You can’t just not sleep!” by now Slaine’s voice has risen, and he is wide awake. He gets up and pulls Inaho out of the room, the other doesn’t release his tablet but follows without resistance. He intends to continue his lecture in the hallway, but Inaho starts walking away. Sighing, Slaine follows.

He hesitates when Inaho leads him off of the ship and into the headquarters. They weren’t supposed to get off until tomorrow… but he’s curious, and he’s definitely not going to let Inaho go alone, so he follows Inaho into the darkly lit corridors. 

He tries to map the turns they take and how far away they are from the ship. He can’t figure out where Inaho is planning on going. Or when Inaho had the time to explore the United Earth Headquarters so thoroughly. Probably when Slaine was sleeping. He can’t figure out much about Inaho. 

But eventually Inaho opens a door and they end up outside, the night sky above them. It’s cold outside, Slaine pulls his arms around himself to keep warm but Inaho sits down on top of the building, putting his tablet to his side. 

Slaine sits down next to him. “Why are we out here? Are we even allowed to be out here?” his breath comes out in a visible puff. 

“Because I thought you would like to see it.” Inaho doesn’t answer the second question, Slaine assumes it’s probably a no. But Inaho is right, it’s beautiful out, despite the cold. The sky is clear, the stars are shining brightly, and Inaho is next to him. 

But Slaine turns his attention to the problem at hand. “What was so important to research that you weren’t sleeping?” 

“Nothing.”

Slaine sighs. “You can’t just stay on your tablet all night! It’s not healthy!”

“You were awake, too,” Inaho points out.

Slaine flushes. “Yes, but that’s different!”

“How?”

“Because I didn’t choose to be! And I was going to go back to sleep.”

“Except you didn’t.”

“That’s because you were being stupid again, Orange!”

“Why did you wake up?”

“I-I had a nightmare.” Slaine turns away from Inaho. “About the war.” They’re both silent for a few minutes. Slaine turns back to Inaho. “How do you think history will remember us?”

“History is written by the winner I’m not fighting for recognition, I’m fighting to survive. So it doesn’t matter.”

“Yes it does!”

“Why? Do you want to be famous?” 

“No! I don’t want to be remembered at all,” he’s terrified of the thought of everyone knowing the name Slaine Troyard. Of them knowing about the terran boy who was raised on mars. Of them knowing his past. “But if I am, I-I just want to remembered for fighting for Princess Asseylum. I don’t want to be remembered for killing. I don’t want to be hated…I want…” he doesn’t know what he wants. “We are in the middle of the second earth-mars war. We are part of history right now. Will we be seen as the heroes or the enemy? Will we even be around to see what the world thinks of us?” 

Slaine wants to be at Inaho’s side at the end of the war. Both of them heroes, to their friends, if not the world. Both of them alive.

“I don’t know. Soldiers that die in war are often more celebrated, though, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“It’s not!” He says, and then softer, “…are you scared to die?”

“Everyone dies eventually. Every second out here is a second closer to our deaths.”

Slaine doesn’t regret that he is spending those seconds with Inaho. “That didn’t answer my question.”

Inaho shakes his head. “No. But I want to live. Our natural instinct is self-preservation. We wouldn’t have advanced as a race otherwise. Are you?”

“I don’t know,” Slaine sighs. “But you will be in the history books as the one who single handedly took down the Orbital knights and got Princess Asseylum to the UFE safely.”

“It wasn’t single handedly. And I don’t care what history says.”

“I don’t either! I-I just want to do the right thing. I want to be able to help.”

“We are in the center of the war, here with Seylum. Anything we do will change the outcome.”

Slaine thinks about that for a minute. “Do you believe in fate?”

“What?”

“Like, do you really think we can change anything? Or is everything set in stone?”

“That’s illogical. Every choice we make changes something. We would have no free will. Why would we even bother fighting, if the outcome would always remain the same?”

“So then do you believe in parallel universes?” Inaho stares at him. Slaine laughs as the ridiculousness of his own question. He nudges Inaho with his shoulder. “If every choice we make changes something, then are there universes where we made a different choice with a different outcome?” Slaine smiles, it isn’t a serious question, but he’s interested in Inaho’s answer.

Inaho considers the question. “I suppose it’s possible. There is no proof otherwise. Also, the universe is infinitely expanding. But it is very unlikely.”

“There might be a universe out there where you actually sleep.” Slaine laughs. “But that’s as unlikely as there being one where you’re not an idiot.”

“I do sleep.” Inaho says defensively. 

Slaine ignores his lie. “There might be a universe where heaven’s fall never happened. There might be a universe where there is peace.”

“And there might be a universe where Seylum was assassinated. There might be a universe where I shot you, and we became enemies. There are infinite good and bad possibilities.”

Slaine doesn’t want to think about it. He can’t handle the thought that one minor choice could have left Princess Asseylum dead or him fighting against Inaho. Fate or parallel universes. Which is worse? There are so many terrible things in the world. He sees soldiers dying, Princess Asseylum crying, bloody bodies that he made, the scars on his body. He knows that the world is ugly. 

He turns to ask Inaho another question. “Hey!” Slaine says, finding Inaho back on his tablet. 

“I’m looking up constellations,” Inaho says calmly, showing Slaine the star charts on his tablet.

“You don’t know the constellations?” Slaine asks, surprised.

“No. They aren’t that useful.”

“I taught them all to Princess Asseylum. I’ll show you,” Slaine lays down on his back and Inaho puts his tablet aside and does the same. “Those three stars in a row are Orion’s belt,” Slaine says pointing upwards. “They are part of the bigger constellation, Orion the hunter,” Inaho nods, easily finding the row of stars. “And that group of stars is the big dipper. It’s part of Ursa Major,” Inaho succeeds in finding those stars as well. “And that,” Slaine says, tracing a line of stars with his hand. “Is Leo, the lion.”

“What?” Inaho’s hand is lifted towards the sky, but he can’t trace the line as Slaine did. 

“It starts with that one,” Slaine says, pointing. “And makes and triangle and then a line…” he sees Inaho has no idea what he is talking about. 

He puts his hand over Inaho’s outstretched on and guides it to the correct place. “There.”

“Ah.”

He moves his hand with Inaho’s. “And that’s the next one.” Inaho nods.

When did they get so close together? Their shoulders are pushing against each other. 

“And then those make the triangle,” Slaine whispers. Inaho’s hand is warm under his. 

He pulls Inaho’s hand in a zigzag line. “That is the body,” he finishes the last stars. “And that is the head.” 

He doesn’t remove his hand from Inaho’s. And Inaho doesn’t move either. Had he unconsciously moved closer to Inaho? Their cheeks are almost brushing. The world is ugly. But here, next to Inaho, watching him watch the stars, hand under Slaine’s, Slaine knows that the world can be beautiful too. 

Inaho turns to look at Slaine, their hands still connected, but drifting downwards. “That doesn’t even look like a lion.” He says cynically. 

“Whoever decided on the constellations obviously had more imagination than you, Orange.”

Their hands land on the floor between them, Slaine’s atop Inaho’s. 

“Imagination is not necessary for most important things.” Inaho says quietly.

“But it’s a good thing to have! You’ve probably never imagined anything before,” Slaine says with a snort. Inaho’s hand is still beneath his. 

“I have.”

“Eggs don’t count.” All Slaine wants to do is twine his fingers between Inaho’s.

Inaho gives him a withering look. Slaine wonders what Inaho would imagine. Probably battle outcomes. And Inaho’s hand is still touching his. Their eyes are lingering on each other. Slaine’s lost in a sea of red. It feels too familiar, being out here with Inaho. He feels like himself again. And Slaine starts imagining closing the distance between their lips. He imagines the feel of Inaho’s lips moving against his. He feels all reason slipping away. 

_I should go. Before I lose all my willpower._

He doesn’t want Inaho to question Slaine’s actions. He doesn’t want another fight. He doesn’t want Inaho to avoid him again.

It feels like the hardest thing Slaine’s ever had to do to break their eye contact, pull his hand away from Inaho’s and gets up.

“Will you actually sleep now, Orange?”

Inaho gets up, brushing off his pants. He doesn’t even seem fazed by how close they were a second before. He hadn’t even thought about it. Slaine is relieved he was able to escape before he did something stupid again.

“I will if you will, Bat.”

“I was trying to before you-!”

Inaho jostles him as he walks by. “Come on,” he says with a smile over his shoulder.

Slaine stares at the small smile. 

_There’s a universe where I kissed him._

He lays in bed thinking about his hour with Inaho, and decides that from now on he will actually be disappointed whenever that he gets a full night’s sleep. 

-

Count Saazbuam is back in Castle Saazbuam. Cruhteo’s men had failed him. As expected. All communication was lost. He supposes that they are dead. Either by the hands of the terrans, or the poison capsules in their teeth. He trusts that no one yet knows his role in the assassination plot. 

This is fine. 

The princess is still alive, but everything is fine.

She will have to announce that she is alive sometime, if she wants to stop the war. 

It won’t work of course. The war was never about that. But her message will never reach Vers. He has allies everywhere, ready to intercept the transmission. And then track it back to her location. 

The only loose thread was Slaine Troyard. Oh, the irony that Dr. Troyard’s son would be opposing this plan. He would laugh, but it wasn’t funny. Maybe if Dr. Troyard had spent some more time with his son, this wouldn’t have happened. Still, he owes Dr. Troyard a debt that he never got to repay before his untimely death. And he will repay it. He wouldn’t kill Slaine Troyard. 

Though, he doubts that Dr. Troyard would have considered that repayment. He barely even looked at his son. If he and Orlane had gotten the chance to have children, he would have… It doesn’t matter. Dr. Troyard was dead, so he didn’t get a say in how his debt was repaid. Besides, Slaine might still be useful. There was still hope to bring Slaine to their cause. Sir Trilliam hadn’t been caught in a meteor bombardment. Slaine has what he needs inside of him. Saazbuam just needs to help him.

Kill the princess, bring back Slaine Troyard. 

He just needs to bide his time and wait for the terrans to act.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -I honestly know nothing about constellations, so I don't even know if those are visible at the same time or anything.
> 
> -I really liked this chapter. I liked writing Captain Magbaredge's perspective. 
> 
> -It kind of made me sad :(
> 
> -If you couldn't tell, I'm going to deal with Slaine's father. Saazbuam said something implying Slaine's father was working with him in the anime, but it was never really dealt with. So hopefully that goes well!
> 
> -Next chapter soon be up relatively soon! Thanks for reading :)


	11. Chapter 11

“Hey, Inaho,” Calm says, and Inaho looks up from his tablet. They have officially left the Deucalion. All the refugees filed out in a happy line an hour earlier. “I looked around. There’s lots of Areions sitting around, so why would you keep using that Sleipnir?”

“I’m used to it.”

“That’s all?” Calm asks, confused.

“Heavier armor wouldn’t have helped against anything we fought so far.”

“If you’re ok with it, suit yourself,” Calm says.

“Do we even have to fight now? We can just let the professionals do their job? Right?” Inko asks, and turns to Nina, who nods her agreement. 

That would be nice…No more fighting, no more killing, everyone safe, he could spend his days with Inaho…

Inaho is looking at his tablet again. “You can’t be too careful.”

Calm bends down to look at what’s on Inaho’s screen. Slaine is struck again by how short Inaho is. He hums at whatever is on the tablet. “It’s got conformal power assist, huh?”

Inaho nods and continues to scroll. 

“Hey everyone!” Yuki approaches them, smiling. “There’s enough rooms for everyone to get their own!” Nina and Inko grin at each other, Calm whoops. Slaine has to admit, it will be nice to sleeping alone. Though, he won’t be able to keep an eye on Inaho… “They’re kind of small, but it’s better than sleeping with a bunch of-!”

“Why?” Inaho interrupts. 

“Huh? Why what?” She tilts her head in confusion. 

“Why are there extra rooms? According to the data, there should be two or three people to a room.”

“Ah…Well… it seems that most of the refugees never arrived…”

The smiles drop off of everyone’s faces. 

“That’s horrible,” Nina whispers.

“Well, they may just be running late!” Yuki says with false cheer. It seems to make the others feel better, but Slaine doubts it’s true. 

“Ah, well, I’ll let you get settled! Bye!” She waves.

Slaine looks at everyone, they are happy and excited to find their room. Why should they care about deaths of people they never met? The base is well protected and has enough supplies for years… Could it maybe actually be over?

-

For some reason, he and Inaho are back in the Deucalion. Inaho wanted to look at the aldnoah drive, so that’s where they were. Staring at the glowing orb. The unnatural lighting tinting everything yellow. Nothing is happening. Slaine feels ridiculous. 

_I should stop following him to every silly idea he has. Or at least make him tell me why first._

He’s just about to demand answers when Princess Asseylum and Eddelrittuo walk in. “This is what started it all,” Asseylum says, smiling at the aldnoah orb. Inaho turns his gaze from the aldnoah drive to princess Asseylum. “Thank you very much, Inaho.” Inaho looks confused. “It’s you whom I owe my life to.”

Slaine doesn’t like the coil of discomfort that pools in his stomach at that statement. He’s supposed to be the one to protect the princess. 

“No, it’s because were in a war.” Inaho says. The feeling disappears, in its place amazement at how stupid Inaho can be.

She ignores him. “We’ve finally reached our destination. How many times did you save me on the way here?”

“I’m not sure. And I wouldn’t say that I’ve saved it.” Inaho says, and Asseylum makes a surprised noise. “This is a war, after all.”

Her face relaxes back into its usual smile. “You’re a kind person, aren’t you?” she says, and Eddelrittuo scowls. 

If Slaine had to pick a word to describe Inaho, it wouldn’t be kind. He’s sure Inaho didn’t save Princess Asseylum out of kindness. It was to survive. 

But he remembers last night. Inaho taking him outside because he thought Slaine would want to see the stars. Inaho training with him. Inaho apologizing. Maybe he is kind…

Inaho makes a confused sound. He hadn’t expected her to say that. Has anyone ever said he was kind before?

“You are,” She says firmly. Inaho looks down, and doesn’t say anything. “After all this is over… we will remain friends after all this is over, won’t we?”

Inaho looks up. “…yes.”

After all this is over… Is it over? Princess Asseylum would give her speech soon. The war could end. She would be safe. She could go back to mars… Inaho could go back to school…

_Where would I go? I don’t belong on mars or earth._

He doesn’t know if he can leave the princess alone on mars. Someone is sure to still want her dead. But he can’t imagine a life after the war without Inaho. Inaho said he would be her friend, but that doesn’t mean he’ll come to mars. How is Slaine supposed to choose between them? Choose a life to live?

Would Inaho even want to be his friend after the war? What is Slaine chooses earth, and Inaho doesn’t need him anymore? Their friendship might only be able to exist in war. Would they have even been friends if they had met under normal circumstances? 

_What will I do?_

Unease is building in Slaine’s stomach. 

“Milady, it’s time,” Eddelrittuo says, and Slaine is panicking. She’s about to give her speech. The war might be over. He would have to choose. He doesn’t belong anywhere. 

“Very well, then let’s be off, Eddelrittuo,” she says and turns to them. “Slaine, Inaho, you too.”

_What? Why them?_

They follow Asseylum off of the Deucalion. Slaine wonders if this is the last time he’ll be on this ship. It holds so many memories. It’s where he made his friends. Where he met Inaho. Their card games, their dance, their cake war. 

Their smiles, laughter, tears, fights…

It feels like he’s leaving home. Something has ended. He’s not sure what, but he can feel the end as soon as the ship is out of sight. It doesn’t feel good. 

They arrive at a large office. Inside sits captain Magbaredge and an older, mustached man in uniform. He must be in charge here. He formally introduces himself as sergeant Petrov. 

It’s obvious that captain Magbaredge has been here for a while, perhaps all day. She looks tired and a bit angry. She must have been recounting their journey to sergeant Petrov. But why are he and Inaho here?

_Because I’m martian? Because I don’t belong here? Because I shot that woman…?_

A million reasons why he would have been called here tumble through his mind, none good. 

“Slaine Troyard, Inaho Kaizuka,” sergeant Petrov says. Slaine instinctively stands straighter at the tone of authority in the man’s voice. 

Inaho makes no attempt at respect. “Why are we here?” he asks bluntly. Captain Magbaredge glares at him. 

The sergeant looks momentarily taken back. “I see Captain Magbaredge wasn’t lying about your attitude,” he says.

Inaho just looks at him defiantly. 

“Um… Are we here so that I can announce that I am alive and stop the war?” Princess Asseylum asks hopefully. Slaine had almost forgotten she was here. 

Sergeant Petrov sighs deeply. “No.” Everyone stares at him in shock. “Given all that happened on your trip here, we have reason to hold off for now. For your safety of course, Princess. As soon as I believe it is safe, we will proceed. For now, we will protect you. Please, know that this is what we think is best.”

Slaine notes that Captain Magbaredge does not look too happy. Why are they holding off?

Princess Asseylum looks upset, but agrees. “If you think it’s best. I just want this war to be over…”

“Us too, Princess. I promise we will announce your survival as soon as possible.”

“Thank you,” she smiles sweetly, not too upset by the change in events. 

“My men will now escort you to your rooms,” Sergeant Petrov says, and some soldiers move to open the door for Asseylum and Eddelrittuo. 

It seems as though they are finished. Why did they have to be here for that? What are their reasons behind their change in plans?

“Not you, Troyard, Kaizuka,” sergeant Petrov says after Asseylum is gone and Slaine is waiting to be dismissed. “We have a job for you two.” Slaine blinks in surprise. A job?

Why does Captain Magbaredge look even madder now? 

Inaho doesn’t seem surprised though. “What is it?”

“We suspect that any transmission we send will not get to Vers.”

Inaho nods, as if he had also suspected as much. And he probably had. 

Sergeant Petrov continues. “As you have probably figured out, the princess’s death was just an excuse to start a war with earth. A carefully planned one. There are martians up there who still want this war, whether or not she is alive. They have worked hard to get this far, and they won’t let a broadcast ruin their plans,” he pauses and looks at them hard. Slaine has a bad feeling in his stomach. “So you two will infiltrate moon base. Make sure the transmission will go through. Kill those who support the war. Find out who is in charge.”

Slaine makes a choked sound in the back of his throat. 

_What…?_

_Go back to Vers…?_

_Kill martians…_

_Why us…?_

“Why us?” Inaho voices Slaine’s thoughts. He already knows the answer. They both do. 

“Because apparently you are a military genius. The only one capable of defeating martian kataphrakts,” he turns to Slaine. “And Troyard is a martian soldier. He lived on Vers. He knows their routines and technology. He likely knows moon base and how it operates. Have you been to moon base before?”

“…yes… once… with my father…”

_Back to moon base… back to Vers…_

“Good. We are refitting your sky carrier for two people. You know how to fly it. You know how to land on moon base undetected or unsuspected. You will leave two days from now.”

Slaine stands there, he can’t move. He’s going to have to go back… kill more people. It’s his job… 

“No,” Inaho says firmly. Slaine looks over at him, eyes wide. 

“What?” Sergeant Petrov asks dangerously. Captrain Magbaregde gives Inaho a surprised look. No one thought Inaho would be the one to refuse. 

“Slaine Troyard shouldn’t go,” Inaho says, not looking at Slaine.

Slaine forgets himself. “What?!” 

Sergeant Petrov narrows his eyes. “Why?” 

“He has not been to moon base in many years. It is unlikely he will remember anything helpful. I am capable of flying the sky carrier. He will endanger the mission. He is not able to against the people he was raised with. If it comes down to it, he will hesitate, putting my life at risk. He is impulsive in battle and is too emotional.” Inaho lists.

“You can’t just say that!” Slaine explodes. “I am a soldier! I know what I’m doing! And I wouldn’t betray you!”

“I’m not saying you would. But you won’t be useful. I will go alone.”

Slaine’s eyes flare with anger. Like he’s going to let Inaho go alone. “No! I know moon base. You need me. I am going!”

“No.”

“Yes!”

Sergeant Petrov considers the fighting boys with distaste. “Unless I have a solid reason otherwise, Slaine Troyard will participate in the mission.”

Panic worms its way back into Slaine’s stomach, mixing with anger at Inaho. He really doesn’t want to go back. But he really can’t let Inaho go alone. 

“Yes sir!” Slaine says. 

Inaho says nothing. He turns and leaves the office. 

They all stare at the closed door. Captain Magbaredge sighs. 

“Dismissed.” Sergeant Petrov finally says to Slaine after glaring at the closed door and then at him. 

Slaine immediately runs after Inaho. He finds him walking through the hallway towards the Deucalion. He grabs Inaho’s arm and drags him through corridors, upstairs, and outside to the roof that they had laid on just yesterday. No one will be out here. No one will hear or interrupt the fight Slaine knows they are about to have. 

It is cold and overcast outside, and it just started to rain lightly. The whole world appears gray. 

Slaine doesn’t care. All he can feel is the anger pulsing in his veins. 

“It’s raining. You’re going to get sick,” Inaho says evenly. 

Slaine ignores him. “Why did you say that?!”

“Because rain often-”

“Not that!”

Inaho gets more serious. “Because it’s true.”

“No it’s not!” Slaine pushes Inaho against the wall behind him. 

Inaho stares calmly back. “You would be a liability.”

“How?!”

“I told you.”

“Why do you think that?! You’ve seen me fight!”

“I have observed your behavior. You fight for Asseylum. That makes you too emotional, too reckless. Going back to Vers would make it worse. You would put the mission, and me, in danger. I would be better off alone.”

Slaine pushes Inaho harder against the wall, his fists flat against Inaho’s chest. “Is that really why you think?!”

“Yes.” Inaho says. They look at each other. It is raining harder now. Inaho’s hair is plastered to his face. Neither talk until Inaho breaks the silence. “Go tell Captain Magbaredge that you can’t go.”

“No! I’m not letting you go alone! Even if you don’t want me! I’m the only one that can go with you!”

“I don’t want you.”

“I thought you trusted me! I thought we were in this together! How can you have no feelings!? No emotions!?” 

Inaho softens. “Slaine-”

“But you’re always going to be the same! You don’t care about anyone but yourself!” Tears are mingling with the rain on Slaine’s face. “You just use people to benefit yourself and then throw them away when you don’t need them anymore!”

Inaho grabs Slaine’s wrists. “No, Slaine I-” 

“No! You don’t get to decide for me! I’m going with you!” Slaine throws Inaho’s hands off, and viciously wipes his face with his sleeve. It doesn’t do any good. It’s pouring now, and they are both soaked. “I don’t care if you don’t want me. Or if you don’t like me. But despite what you think, you need me. I’m going!” With that, he turns around and goes back inside, slamming the door behind him without looking back. 

-

Inaho is standing alone in the rain. It’s not a normal amount, it’s a torrent of water falling on him. Slaine is gone. 

‘Stay’ he wants to say. ‘Come back. Don’t leave. Stay with me. I’m sorry.’ 

But he couldn’t find the right words. He can never find the right words when it comes to Slaine. Everything he says only infuriates Slaine. 

All he knows is that he feels hallow after they fight. He feels empty when Slaine leave him alone. 

Cold water buffets his face, but he can’t feel it. All he can feel is the coldness of Slaine’s anger at him, the numbness of watching him walk away.

“Slaine…” he says again, though Slaine is long gone. Why does it hurt so much?

All Inaho had wanted to do was protect him. Inaho had known that their role in the war wasn’t over yet. But he hadn’t anticipated this. The mission would be dangerous. But so was war. But in a normal battle Inaho knew how to protect Slaine. He doesn’t know how to protect Slaine on moon base. And he doesn’t know how to protect Slaine from his past, from himself. Sending him to back to Vers, sending him to kill people who wanted Seylum dead. Inaho knew Slaine would gladly kill them. Easily kill them. And Inaho can’t take seeing his cold, empty eyes again. 

So yes, he needs Slaine on the mission. He will be much less likely to succeed without him. But even more than that, he needs Slaine to live, Slaine to be safe, Slaine to be whole, Slaine to be happy. And that can’t happen if he goes on the mission. 

But he can’t tell that to Slaine. Slaine wouldn’t appreciate being protected by Inaho. And it would come too close to admitting his feelings. 

He had hoped to avoid a fight by convincing Slaine and sergeant Petrov that Inaho would be more likely to succeed without Slaine. But it didn’t matter. Because Slaine took the lies personally and was angry anyway, and the sergeant wasn’t convinced. 

What do I do now?

Inaho can’t let Slaine go. He will gladly trade an angry Slaine for an alive Slaine. He can be the emotionless machine that Slaine thinks he is if it will save Slaine. Even if Slaine never wants to talk to him again, at least he will be ok. 

But Slaine is adamant about going. Inaho doubts he will be able to convince him otherwise. 

It was all for nothing. 

The rain puddles around his feet, and the wind whips his wet hair, stinging his cheeks. 

All he wants to do it find Slaine. See Slaine’s smile. See Slaine’s eyes full of emotions. 

Inaho’s chest hurts at the memory of Slaine’s angry, hurt eyes as he pushes Inaho away from him. 

Everything is wrong. 

It’s raining. It’s cold. The rain will probably turn to sleet soon…

But Inaho doesn’t move. He doesn’t know where to go. 

-

Slaine walks angrily all the way back to his new room, leaving wet footsteps everywhere. He is grateful he doesn’t see anyone on the way down, because he’s sure he would have snapped at them, or burst into tears. How does Inaho have such an effect on him? Why does he feel like he’s hurting all over?

It’s hard enough, harboring these feelings for Inaho. It hurts enough. Slaine at least took comfort in the fact that Inaho considered him a friend. That was enough for him. Should be enough for him. 

But he was just another pawn for Inaho. Something for Inaho to observe and evaluate and decide whether he was useful or not. Inaho didn’t want Slaine to go on the mission with him. Inaho doesn’t trust him, thinks he’s incompetent. Inaho would rather do everything alone than with Slaine. 

It doesn’t matter. Slaine knows that Inaho needs him, that Inaho can’t go alone. That Inaho can’t die. 

No matter how much of a jerk he is.

He will protect Inaho, no matter what. Even if Inaho hates him.   
__  
“Is that really what you think?!”  
“Yes.”  
  
Slaine angrily slumps down the wall, cursing Inaho’s infuriatingly calm face, Inaho’s emotionless eyes, the feel of Inaho’s stupid chest. The pounding of Inaho’s heartbeat. 

His heartbeat…

Slaine had felt it. He knew it. He was always hyperaware of Inaho.

His heartbeat was loud and fast… It could have been from their fight…

Or he was lying. 

The anger drains out of Slaine, he picks his head up. 

Why would he lie? About what?

He tries to figure it out. He goes back through the conversation in the office, and their subsequent fight. 

Why doesn’t he want me to go if it’s not for the reasons he said?

Slaine puts his head in his hands. “Ugh! Why is he so frustrating?!”

_Inaho is being an idiot again. I can’t leave him alone, he’s bound to do something even stupider._

Slaine isn’t angry anymore. And he realizes he’s been sitting in a cold puddle of water, and his clothes are soaked through. He shivers and heads for the bathroom. He needs a warm shower and to decide what to do. 

Inaho needs him. Inaho was lying. 

He closes his eyes and lets the shower water run over him. 

Inaho didn’t want him to go. Inaho lied. 

Was Inaho… trying to protect him?

He opens his eyes. Inaho was trying to protect him.

That idiot.

He knew that he needed Slaine. He knew Slaine was the best choice. And still he tried to stop Slaine from going. 

“Ugh.” Slaine can’t ignore the fluttering in his stomach at fact that Inaho is trying to protect him. That he cares about Slaine. 

He went about it the completely wrong way. He really is terrible with dealing with people. 

He can’t let Inaho go alone. He can’t let Inaho avoid him after their fight. Who knows what he will try to do in these two days?

Slaine covers a yawn. It’s not too late, but he’s exhausted. He trusts that Inaho can’t do much tonight. And that he won’t even want to see Slaine right now anyway. 

He’ll find him tomorrow. So he sleeps the rest of the day away.

-

Her heart is breaking. She tried to convince sergeant Petrov that he should send experienced soldiers, not children. 

“They aren’t children.”

That was his reply. And she couldn’t dispute it. They really weren’t. Hadn’t been for a long time. They were the best for this mission. She knew that. She knew that they were probably the only ones who could succeed and maybe make it back alive. 

That didn’t make it any easier. She felt responsible for them. She might have secretly entertained a tiny sliver of hope that those two could wash their hands of this war when they landed here. That they could enjoy time with their friends, be normal teenagers, learn to live again. 

But that hope was shattered so fast and completely. This mission was the tipping point. They were being sent to kill people. An assassination mission. They couldn’t walk away after it. They were both already precariously dangling off the edge; this would push them off. If they lived, they would be in this to the end. They would be different. She saw it happen to her brother.

And then Inaho tried to keep Slaine from going. And Slaine refused, even though everyone could see how scared he was. That was the moment her heart broke. Inaho was trying to protect Slaine. She was not expecting it at all. Inaho would go alone, knowing his chances of living were lessoned, in order to keep Slaine from going.   
Inaho would never have done that. He wouldn’t keep someone safe if it was unbeneficial to the mission. 

But he did. And Slaine, despite his terror, wouldn’t let Inaho go alone. And she realized just how much those boys meant to each other. They were completing each other, fixing each other. But they didn’t have any more time. It was too late. 

They didn’t even have any time to have fun or be happy. Two days. It wasn’t enough. 

They need each other. Maybe if they go together they can save each other. Maybe it will be enough. Maybe they will make it back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where I'm sticking another little side arc. I hope it turns out ok!
> 
> I'm trying to hurry though this, hopefully will get another chapter out in the next few days. I'm excited for the next few chapters :)
> 
> Thanks so much for reading and commenting! You guys are great!


	12. Chapter 12

Slaine sneezes.

“You’re sick,” Inaho says, sitting across the table from Slaine.

“I’m fine,” Slaine objects. 

“That’s the fifth time you have sneezed since we got here.”

“Don’t count my sneezes! That’s weird!” 

“And your eyes are watering. You have a cold.”

“I’m fine!” Slaine says forcibly.

“It’s probably because of the rain. I told you-” Inaho stops. He went to find Slaine this morning, not sure what he was going to stay. He just knew he didn’t want to fight again. But to Inaho’s surprise, Slaine found him. He had smiled and invited Inaho to breakfast. Like nothing had happened last night. Maybe he had decided that Inaho was right, and wouldn’t go on the mission. Or maybe, like Inaho, he wasn’t willing to spoil their last two days here together. Two days is a long time. They can be happy now, and fight later. 

Either way, Inaho is more than happy to play along. He’s sure whatever he would have said to Slaine would have only made it worse anyway. This seemed like a small miracle, and extremely lucky (even though Inaho didn’t believe in miracles, or luck). 

So, Inaho is hesitant to mention last night. Even though he was right about the rain giving Slaine a cold. He’s not sure what will set Slaine off. 

So now there’s an awkward silence. At least it’s awkward for Inaho. He’s not sure what Slaine is thinking.

Luckily, Inko and Nina soon appear. “Hey guys!” Inko says cheerfully. 

Slaine sneezes in greeting. 

“Oh! Slaine are you sick?” Nina asks, concerned. 

“No! I’m fine.”

“I don’t know…” Inko says. “You sound pretty sick.”

“I’m not!” 

“Ok! Ok!” She holds up her hands in surrender. “Anyway, what do you guys want to do today?!”

She must not know about their mission. Otherwise she wouldn’t be so perky. None of them know, or they wouldn’t be so calm. He doesn’t plan on telling them.

“Hey!” Calm says, walking up to them. He looks at Slaine. “Oh, man. You don’t look too good. Did you go outside in the rain or something?”

“Ugh! Fine! I’m sick!” Slaine yells. Calm looks taken back by the sudden outburst. 

Inaho nods, and Slaine glares at him.

“In that case,” Inko says. “We should watch a movie!”

“A movie?” Slaine asks.

“They are a recording of images that tells a story,” Inaho supplies.

“I know what a movie is, Orange!” Slaine snaps. “I just have seen one in a while…”

“Even better! What should be watch?” Inko looks at all of them for suggestions. 

“There’s this interesting documentary about-” 

“NO!” Everyone yells before he can finish. 

“We can watch Titanic!” Nina suggests. Inko nods happily.

“That movie didn’t make sense. Two people could have fit on that board. Also, throwing the necklace into the ocean was illogical.” Inaho says. Inko had made him watch the movie with her a few years ago after school. Inaho had found at least fifteen things wrong with it. 

“Ugh! Inaho!” Inko says. She had heard his thoughts on it before, when she had asked how he liked it. She was not pleased with his analysis. 

They debate over movies and Inaho decides not to offer his input anymore. Instead he watches Slaine, whose cheeks are a bit flushed. 

Does he have a fever? It’s too hard to tell. He’s always red for some reason.

Finally, they decide on a movie. Inko makes him hook his tablet up to a display monitor to watch it on while they push an old couch in front of it, and layer pillows on the floor. 

Inko then insists that he and Slaine take the couch. Her reasoning being that Slaine is sick, and Inaho probably already caught it anyway, so he should be the one who has to sit next to Slaine. It makes sense. 

They start the movie. It’s one Inaho has already seen. Everyone is quietly watching the glowing screen. 

Ten minutes in, Inaho leans over to Slaine. “The main character is actually dead the whole time,” he tells Slaine helpfully. 

Everyone groans. 

“Orange! You can’t just spoil the movie!” Slaine says. 

“What? It’s beneficial to know beforehand.”

“No it’s not!” Inko yells. “Or they would have told us!”

It’s not Inaho’s fault the director didn’t know how to make a good movie. 

They shut the movie off, and this time they put Inaho through an intense questioning process, trying to find a movie Inaho has not seen. 

They pick a new movie and Inko warns Inaho to keep his mouth shut. The movie isn’t very interesting or good. Inaho wonders why he is even watching a movie when he has more important things to do…

He glances at Slaine sitting next to him, he seems to be enjoying it. 

Inaho guesses that he can spend some time watching a movie.

He’s busy making a list of everything he needs to do. And watching Slaine. To be able to judge his degree of sickness. 

At what Inaho estimates is halfway through the movie, Slaine sneezes again, covering his mouth with his hands. But when he puts his hand back down on the couch, it touches Inaho’s. It is barely touching. But it’s touching. Their hands are resting in the middle of the couch, in contact with each other. 

Inaho’s chest flutters. 

Slaine probably doesn’t even notice. 

They sit side by side, watching the movie (or not, in Inaho’s case), their hands brushing each other. At one point, Inaho shifts. And his hand pushes more firmly against Slaine’s. He’s worried that Slaine will notice now, and break their tiny thread of contact. But he doesn’t He’s too absorbed in the movie to notice. 

Inaho glances at him, but he is staring fixedly at the screen. 

Inaho feels like he can sense every nerve in his hand. All he can think about is Slaine’s hand next to his. Their little fingers slightly overlapping. He feels every twitch of Slaine’s finger, each movement making Inaho sure Slaine is going to pull his hand away. But he doesn’t. 

This is how it should be. Slaine is here. Slaine is alive. Slaine is next to him. 

The movie ends too soon. Inaho wonders if he can convince the others to watch another one… without moving, without Slaine moving. He can’t find a feasible way, so he reluctantly moves his hand away when everyone starts moving. 

“So what did you think of the movie, Inaho?” Inko asks, warily. 

Inaho has no idea what the movie was even about, much less whether it was good or not. “It was fine.”

“Really? Because I thought you would have more to say about it.”

“No.”

Inko narrows her eyes. “What about you, Slaine?”

“Uh… yeah! It was good!” 

She looks like she doesn’t believe him. But then Slaine sneezes again. 

“You should go see Dr. Yagarai,” Nina says.

“Inaho, take him!” Inko chimes in. 

Slaine isn’t objecting. He must feel bad. “Fine,” Inaho says, and they walk to Dr. Yagarai’s new office while the others clean up. By the time they get there, Slaine looks even worse. 

“Yep. You have a fever,” Dr. Yagarai says, taking the thermometer from Slaine’s mouth. Slaine is shivering. “I recommend bedrest. You should be better soon, if you stay in bed.”

“Thank you,” Slaine sniffles. 

They walk to Slaine’s room. “I was right,” Inaho points out.

Slaine rolls his eyes. “Yes you were, Orange. For once.”

“I am right most of the time.”

“Sure you are,” Slaine smiles through his fever. 

That smile… Inaho never wants to look away. Never wants to lose it. He will do anything to keep it on Slaine’s face.

He’s addicted. Addicted to Slaine’s eyes, Slaine’s smile. When did it get do bad?

“Get in,” Inaho says to Slaine as he also crawls into the bed. 

“What are you doing?! You can’t just get in my bed!” 

“You are shivering from your fever. It’s cold outside and these walls do not provide sufficient insulation. You will not better if you don’t stay warm. My body heat will help, and there is enough room for two,” Inaho is convincing himself it is necessary as much as he’s convincing Slaine. It is the rational solution to the problem. 

“…fine,” Slaine mutters and climbs into the bed. They keep a safe distance from each other, but Inaho can feel Slaine shaking. Inaho doesn’t like seeing Slaine sick. He wishes he could be closer to him, could keep him warm, make him better, keep him safe. 

He watches as Slaine slowly stops shivering and goes from an uneasy, fitful sleep, to relaxed one. His face turning from a grimace of pain to tranquil. 

Inaho doesn’t mean to, but he only got a couple hours of sleep last night, and Slaine’s even breathing is hypnotic, so Inaho’s eyes begin to drift closed. 

-

Inaho wakes up as he usually does; suddenly and with complete awareness of his surroundings. 

Everything is different. 

His head is resting on something warm, which he discovers is Slaine’s chest. Inaho’s head rises and falls with Slaine’s breathing. Slaine’s heartbeat is in his ear.  
Somehow, they had gotten tangled together during their sleep. 

Slaine’s arms are wrapped firmly around Inaho, pulling him closer. Inaho’s arm is resting on Slaine’s waist. Their legs are intertwined. Slaine’s head is laying on top of his. 

Inaho closes his eyes, lays still, listening and feeling Slaine’s breathing. He savors the warmth, Slaine’s arms wrapped around him, Slaine’s legs mixed up with his, the sound and feel of Slaine’s every breath. 

Everything is right. 

Slaine, still asleep, nuzzles his face into Inaho’s hair. Inaho presses his face into Slaine’s chest harder, not wanting to let go. 

His heart feels full, feels serene. He wants to stay here forever. Forget the war. Forget everything but Slaine, his body pressed against Inaho’s. 

Instead, Inaho carefully untangles himself from Slaine and sits on the opposite side of the bed. It hurts. He doesn’t know how they had ended up in that position, but it was probably due to his own unconsciousness. Slaine couldn’t find out. It wouldn’t happen again. It hurts. 

Slaine obviously impaired Inaho’s ability to think. He shouldn’t have gotten in bed with Slaine in the first place. It had made sense, it was the logical thing to do. But Slaine was able to twist sense and logic, make Inaho lose all reason. Slaine is making him lose his mind. 

He watches as Slaine’s face twists from calm to pain. He shifts uneasily. A nightmare? Inaho wants to remove all pain from Slaine’s life. He wants to go back to Slaine’s arms and fight the nightmare away. He fights the impulse. He can’t protect Slaine from his own mind. He can’t even protect himself from Slaine. 

There had to be lines. Lines he shouldn’t cross. One is what he does. Getting into bed with Slaine crossed that line. The other is what he takes. Enjoying those seconds being held by and holding Slaine crossed that line. Crossing the lines was dangerous. Dangerous to his mind, to his being. He will have to be more careful. Even reason doesn’t work around Slaine. He feels like he’s going crazy, like he’s falling too hard to stop. 

Slaine shifts in the bed, and blinks slowly, groggily coming awake. Inaho can’t look away from the sight, blue eyes unfocused, blonde hair tousled, face flushed with fever. He feels a shiver of fear run through him. He can’t look away. Addicted. 

“Inaho…” Slaine says sleepily. It hurts. Slaine sits up. “Were you watching me sleep again?”

“You’re sick,” Inaho says.

“Yes, we’ve already established that, Orange,” Slaine says dryly, more awake now. 

“You can’t go.”

“What?”

“You can’t go,” Inaho repeats. Slaine is sick. Slaine can’t go on the mission if he is sick. He can’t let Slaine go. 

Slaine sighs, exasperated. “I’m going, Inaho.”

Inaho reaches out and puts his hand on Slaine’s forehead. “You have a fever. You can’t-”

Slaine pulls Inaho’s hand off, and holds his wrist. “Why do you not want me to go?”

“I told you, I-”

“You were lying.”

Inaho is taken back. “I…What?”

“We both know that you need me. We work better together. You can’t try to protect me Inaho,” Slaine’s thumb is rubbing small circles on his wrist. “I’m going. There’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

“No. Slaine-”

“Inaho,” Slaine gives Inaho a hard look. Then looks down at his hand still rubbing Inaho’s wrist and lets go. It hurts. “Don’t you have things to prepare or something? We’re going to do this and I’d rather be ready.”

Everything hurts.

-

Inaho is pacing. He’s pacing because he can’t think of a plan. He always has a plan. How is he going to prevent Slaine from going? It doesn’t matter that Slaine figured out his lie. He still couldn’t let Slaine go. 

He considers physically injuring Slaine. If Slaine can’t use his arm, he can’t go. But that would put him in a bad position if an attack happened here. Plus, Inaho doesn’t think he can hurt Slaine. 

_Maybe if I…_

“Nao!” Yuki says, walking up to him. Not now. He needs to think. “Come sit with me.”

“I can’t.”

“Yes you can,” she says firmly and drags him with her. So he ends up seating across from her at a table. 

“What is it, Yuki?” he asks impatiently.

“I heard about the mission, Nao,” she says sadly. “I tried to tell them not to make you go. But you would go anyway, wouldn’t you?”

“Yes.”

She shakes her head. “My little brother is so brave. Don’t die, come back to me.”

“I’ll try my best.”

She looks closely at him. “Why are you so worked up? You never worry over missions…Oh. It’s because he’s going too.”

“What?”

“Slaine. You’re worried because of Slaine.”

“I’m not worried.”

“Yes you are! I can see it on your face.”

Inaho tries to relax his features. “How?”

Yuki smiles. “You always have so much more emotion when you’re with Slaine. Everyone can tell, not just me. Though, I am still the best at reading you. We’re family after all!”

Everyone can tell? “I don’t-”

“Slaine is a good friend. I’m glad he’s going with you! He’s not a princess, but I’m glad my little brother was able to fall in love!”

In love? “Yuki, I’m not in love-”

“Yes you are,” she smiles. “I’m your sister, I can tell. It’s all over your face.”

“Love is illogical. It might not even really exist. It doesn’t make any sense.”

“That’s why I was so surprised that you would fall in love! I was worried it would never happen, with you thinking like that. But you did anyway!” she says happily. 

He thinks of Slaine’s smile, Slaine’s laugh, Slaine’s eyes. 

_I’m in love with Slaine._

“I can’t be in love with Slaine,” he says, desperately. 

It hurts. How does he stop it?

“You don’t get to choose who you fall in love with,” Yuki says. 

_I’m in love with Slaine._

_I’m in love with everything about him. I need him. I can’t stop it. It hurts._

“It’s illogical,” he repeats. “Why should I be willing to die for him? Do anything to keep him safe? It doesn’t make sense.”

She smiles sadly at him. “That’s what love is.”

“Why does it hurt so much?”

Yuki gets up and envelops him in a tight hug. “Oh, Nao,” she says sadly. 

“I’m scared.”

It feels like she’s crying into his hair. “Me too.”

“I can’t let him go.”

“I don’t think you can stop him. And you need him with you, don’t be stupid. All you can do is try to protect him.”

“I don’t know if I can.”

“You can. I know you can.”

The fight goes out of Inaho. He sags into Yuki’s arms. Slaine is going. Inaho can’t stop him. Slaine is going to be in danger. He’s in love with Slaine. So deeply in love with Slaine. And he can’t do anything. Why did this happen? When did this temporary attraction, the inconvenient distraction, become this all-encompassing thing? It was like a virus that slowly infected him without his knowledge. Now that he’s aware of it, he can feel it everywhere. It is completely covering him, there is no part unaffected. 

It changes nothing. He has to protect Slaine. 

“Thank you, Yuki,” he says, hugging her back, and lets go. He gives her a smile. “I have stuff to do.”

“I know. Be careful, Nao! Don’t get killed, please!” she says, still crying. 

“I won’t.”

“Don’t let him die, either.”

“I won’t.” 

_I can’t._

-

Inko wipes away her tears. They won’t help her now. They won’t stop Inaho and Slaine from leaving. They won’t stop them from dying. 

She considers going back to Captain Magbaredge and asking her, begging her, to not make them go. Or to let her go as well. But she knows Inaho, and she knows he would go anyway. It is an important mission, after all. And she would just be a burden to them. Those two are completely out of her league when it comes to this. There is nothing she can do. She feels helpless. 

When Captain Magbaredge called her into her office, Inko was still smiling from a joke Nina told her. She felt happy and relaxed for the first time in a while. All of her friends were here, alive and safe. She was plotting on how to further investigate Slaine and Inaho without their knowledge. She was pretty sure something had gone down at the movie, and she was going to get to the bottom of it. 

The smile quickly dropped off of her face when she heard was Captain Magbaredge had to tell her. A familiar dread settled back into her stomach. 

Why did this still have to happen? They were supposed to be done with this war. They were just kids, not soldiers. Why did Inaho and Slaine have to do this? It wasn’t fair. They were supposed to be playing games, and watching movies, and going to school. Slaine and Inaho were supposed to bicker and make messes and ‘secretly’ care about each other; not kill people. They were all supposed to be together. 

But now Inaho and Slaine were leaving, ruining everything. And they hadn’t even told her! Why didn’t they tell her, tell their friends?! She understands why they might not have wanted to. Everyone was happy, they didn’t want to ruin that. Well… maybe that was Slaine’s reasoning. Inaho probably just didn’t think it was necessary. That idiot. Were they just going to disappear and leave them to wonder where they went? To hear it from someone else?

Obviously. They’re both idiots. 

It’s that moment that she decides that as long as Inaho and Slaine are fighting, she will also fight. She won’t leave them alone. They’re in this together. She will have to give up her dreams of fun and carefree friendship for now. But she will fight to get that dream back. She will fight so that Inaho and Slaine can be a part of it. She won’t abandon them. 

So as she wipes her tears, sadness is replaced with anger and determination. Those idiots are going on a dangerous mission and they didn’t even tell her. But they won’t die. They have each other, and they have proven before that they make an unstoppable team. They will come back, she’s sure of it. And she will be ready.  
But they don’t have time to be stupid anymore. She picks herself up and stomps off, she has a mission of her own to complete.

-

Slaine is sitting up in bed, reading something important on a tablet he borrowed. Or at least, he’s trying to read. His mind keeps wondering, and he’s pretty sure he’s read this same sentence five times now. At least he feels a bit better now. His fever seems to be going down. If it was possible to will away a cold, Slaine would have done it by now. He needs to be better for the mission. He needs to be able to protect Inaho. 

He tries to read the sentence again, but fails. He sighs and puts down the tablet. At that moment, Inaho opens the door and walks in. Without as much as a knock.  
“You can’t just barge in here, Orange,” Slaine says, but it’s lacking any annoyance or bite. He’s happy to see Inaho, and it would have been weird if Inaho had displayed actual manners and knocked first. Slaine likes Inaho how he is. 

“I brought you soup,” Inaho says, holding up a bowl with steam rising from it. He hasn’t moved from the doorway. 

Slaine narrows his eyes. “Did you make it yourself?” he asks doubtfully. “Do you even know how to cook? I don’t want to get even sicker. Maybe that’s your plan. Poison me so that I can’t go with you.” He’s joking. Mostly. But Inaho gets a look on his face that tells Slaine that he is considering leaving and coming back with poisoned soup. But he doesn’t move from the doorway. 

“I actually am rather skilled at cooking,” Inaho says, offended. “I cook for Yuki all the time.”

Slaine smirks. “I know what you probably cook her.”

“Shut up, Bat. I found the recipe on my tablet. It’s supposed to be good for colds.”

“Of course you did. Are you just going to stand there or are you going to make me get up?” Slaine asks, confused as to why Inaho hasn’t moved an inch since he opened the door. Usually he is the number one invader of personal space. Not that Slaine actually minds. But Inaho looks like he’s actually debating on whether or not to come over here. “Are you worried about getting sick? Because I think it’s too late for that. You slept in my bed after all.” He tries not to flush at how that statement sounds. Or makes him feel. He hopes his fever hides any sign. 

“…No.” Inaho still doesn’t move.

“Then why are you acting so weird?!”

Inaho glares at Slaine. “I’m not,” and he slowly walks over to the bed, and puts the bowl on the table next to Slaine. He sits on the edge of Slaine’s bed. Slaine’s glad that Inaho has stopped thinking about whatever undoubtedly idiotic thing that was making him be weird. 

The soup smells really good, and Slaine is hungry and has a sore throat. Even if this soup is some gross egg concoction or poisoned, he doesn’t really care right now. As Slaine reaches for the spoon, Inaho reaches for Slaine and plants his hand on Slaine’s forehead. Slaine jerks back in surprise and drops the spoon. “Ugh! Inaho!”

“Your fever seems to have gone down.”

“Now there’s soup everywhere!” Slaine yells, looking down at him and Inaho, both wet with soup.

“It was your fault.”

“No it wasn’t!” Slaine says, as he desperately tries to dry his pants with his hands. 

“You dropped the soup.”

“You hit me in the forehead!”

“It wasn’t a hit.”

“You should at least warn me before!”

“I needed to check your fever.”

“Did you have to do it right that second?!” 

“…Yes.”

Slaine gives up on his pants. “Ugh. Just go find some napkins or something.”

Inaho pulls some napkins out of his pocket and gives them to Slaine. “Here.”

“Why didn’t you give these to me sooner?!”

“You didn’t ask for them.”

Slaine groans in frustration as he more successfully cleans his pants. 

“Here,” Slaine says, handing Inaho the napkin after doing all he can do for now. 

Inaho shakes his head. “I’ll do it later. Eat your soup, you’re still sick.”

“I don’t need you to take care of me,” Slaine mutters. 

“I’m doing it anyway.”

Slaine falls silent. He doesn’t know what to say. He eats some soup. It’s actually really good, to his slight surprise. Inaho made him soup. Inaho took time to make Slaine soup, Inaho is taking time to take care of him. Emotionless, logical Inaho is taking care of him. 

“…I’ve never had anyone take care of me when was sick before.” Slaine wishes he could take it back the moment he says it. Inaho doesn’t need to know that. No one needs to know that Slaine has never received even this simple gesture of kindness before. He doesn’t want Inaho’s pity. He looks away. 

“Now you have.” Inaho says simply. 

Slaine looks up and meets Inaho’s gaze. “Thank you, Inaho.”

Now Inaho looks away. “Just eat your soup.”

Slaine smiles. “Fine,” he eats some more. “You know this actually isn’t terrible.”

“Hey.”

“Who knew Inaho Kaizuka was capable of such a thing?” 

“I can cook many things.”

“There’s no proof of that.” Slaine grins. He feels a lot better already.

“I’ll prove it.”

“I look forward to it, Orange.”

“Eat your soup.” Inaho says again. This time Slaine complies without a word. The soup goes down easy. Inaho picks up Slaine’s discarded tablet and thumbs through it as Slaine finishes the soup. “There’s not much information available on moon base,” Inaho tells Slaine in response to the article on the tablet. 

Slaine sighs and sets down the empty bowl. At least Inaho isn’t trying to stop him anymore. Inaho seems to have decided to let Slaine help as much as he can. That must be why he’s nursing Slaine back to health. Slaine moves to sit next to Inaho so he can look at the tablet as well. “I know. I’ve been there before, but I wanted to see some diagrams or floorplans or something.” 

“Why did you go?”

“My father… he had something to do there. He went a lot actually, but that was the only time he took me. I don’t know why. He left me alone in a room, and I never saw anyone until he came back for me a few hours later.”

“Why did he take you, then?”

“I don’t know! Maybe he couldn’t find anyone willing to watch me while he was gone. Maybe he decided he should at least pretend to be a father to me.” Slaine hates the anger in his voice. It shouldn’t matter to him anymore.

“So you don’t actually know anything about moon base.”

“I do! I do… I know we took a back entrance, because I was wondering why we didn’t have to get clearance first.”

“Why would your father take a back entrance?”

“I don’t know! I don’t know anything about him! But I know how to get in! And that’s what’s important!”

“That was years ago. You don’t know if it’s still there.”

“It is! It has to be!” It’s the one thing Slaine is counting on. The biggest way he can help. The only thing his father will have been good for. 

Inaho looks unconvinced. “You need to sleep,” The bed raises slightly as Inaho gets up. “You’re still sick."

Slaine doesn’t argue. Not even when Inaho confiscates his tablet. “Whatever. I’ll be better tomorrow.”

“We’ll see. Get me if you need anything.” Inaho says as he reaches the door.

Slaine snorts. “Sure, I’ll wake you up to get you to make me a soufflé this time.”

Inaho smiles. “Goodnight, Slaine.”

“…Goodnight, Inaho.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Inaho :,(
> 
> I'm sure Inaho would spoil every movie or book Slaine was trying to read.
> 
> Thanks so much for reading and commenting! I hope you liked this chapter :) I'm a bit nervous about the upcoming chapters, but they should be out soon!


	13. Chapter 13

The door slams open, light floods into the room. Slaine jerks awake and squints confusedly at the angry figure standing in the doorway. He really should lock his door. It must be morning, Slaine feels like he’s slept for years. 

“Slaine!” The figure yells and steps out of the light. Now Slaine can see that it is Inko. “Are you better?” She demands. 

What is going on? “Er… Uh, yes?” He says. He finds that he really goes feel a lot better. His headache is gone, and his throat isn’t sore anymore. And he’s happy to find that he can actually breathe out of both nostrils. Maybe it was Inaho’s mystery soup. 

“Good! Because I didn’t want to yell at a sick person!”

“W-what?”

“I was going to yell at you yesterday, but Inaho wouldn’t let me in.”

“W-what! Why am I getting yelled at?”

“Oh, maybe because you’re leaving tomorrow,” she starts off calmly. “And didn’t tell any of us!” she shouts. 

Slaine hangs his head in shame. He didn’t want to tell the others. He didn’t want them to worry or get mad. He wanted them to be able to be happy, and have no part in it. But not telling them obviously hurt them anyway. “Inko, I’m sorry.”

She sighs. “At least you are apologizing! I yelled at Inaho yesterday and all he had to say was ‘you didn’t need to know’ and went on about how it doesn’t involve us! Of course it involves us!” Inko angry is terrifying. Slaine is relieved she seems to be directing her anger towards Inaho now instead of him. But then her eyes flash and all sense of safety is gone. “But you didn’t tell us either! We’re supposed to be your friends!”

Slaine feels terrible. He did the same thing he accuses Inaho of doing; not letting his friends help, trying to do everything alone. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t want to upset you.”

“Well, that worked out so well didn’t it?!” she groans. “You two are impossible.” She comes and sits next to Slaine on the bed. Slaine fights the impulse to scoot away and out of range from her. It will probably only make her angrier. “Between the two of you…!” She reaches towards Slaine. Slaine instinctively jerks away back from the angry girl, but she captures him in a hug. “Just come back safe, ok?” She says softly. 

“Inko…”

“And make sure that idiot does, too!”

Of course. That’s Slaine’s main goal of the mission. He would easily fail if it would save Inaho’s life. “I will.” 

She pulls back and looks him hard in the eyes. “You love him.”

Panic spreads through Slaine’s body. He feels heat rush to his cheeks. “W-what?!” He sputters, and looks away.

Inko doesn’t blink. “You do.” 

Slaine looks back at her, strong eyes fully focused on him. She knows. Slaine sighs deeply. There’s really no point in denying it anymore. Not to Inko, not to himself. He is in love with Inaho. “Yes.”

Inko grins. “I knew it!” She takes out a small book and writes something down. Slaine looks on in confusion. What is she doing? He leans over to try and look, but she closes the book and tucks it away before Slaine can look at it. At least she doesn't seem mad... 

“…Is it that obvious?” Slaine asks, worried. 

Inko snorts. “Yes,” Slaine’s eyes widen in horror. “But not to him. He’s an idiot after all. He’s even more terrible with other people’s feelings than he is with his own!” she looks down at her hands. “I used to love him too, you know. For years.”

Slaine looks away, ears red. He wishes he could disappear right there. This is not a conversation he ever wanted to have. No one was ever supposed to find out. And now Inko is telling him that she loved the same person he does! Slaine feels like he’s drowning in awkwardness.

But he tentatively looks back, and finds Inko smiling at him. There was no bitterness in her voice as he continues. “But I realized it wasn’t real. Not in that way, anyway. I still love him as a friend, of course. I was just lying to myself all those years. I let go, and I’m so much happier! You made me realize that. It was nothing like how you feel. Yours is real, I can tell.”

Slaine doesn’t know what to say. “I…I-”

“So thank you, Slaine. And I’m sorry that you have to deal with him now,” She grins. 

“It’s so hard,” Slaine says, surprising himself by opening up to Inko. But she loved him. She knows, she understands. And Slaine’s kept these feelings bottled up for so long. 

“That’s because it’s Inaho! Nothing is easy with him. He’s an idiot.”

Slaine smiles. “I’ve realized that.”

She laughs. “But we’re both idiots too. For falling for him,” Inko gets a distant look in her eyes. “One time I made him take me to a movie. I got all dressed up and everything, and when I asked how I looked, he said ‘you look tired’! And then he was on his tablet the whole movie, and kept saying very Inaho things. The whole theater hated him by the time the movie was over! Then, on the way home, he explained everything that was wrong with the movie. Then he said ‘bye’ and left without even a hug!” 

They’re both silent for a second as Inko finishes the story. Then they burst out laughing. Inaho was (is) such an idiot. Slaine feels warm at the story, at knowing this snippet of Inaho’s past, at the fact that Inaho hasn’t changed at all since then. 

“I used to get so mad at him for doing stuff like that. He always made me so mad! But you’re always happy when you’re around him, even when he says something stupid. He makes you happy. I don’t know how you manage it.”

Slaine can’t imagine get actually made at Inaho for doing that. Or for spoiling their movie. Or for not knocking before coming in. Or for criticizing his cleaning skills, or making a mess, or stepping on his toes while dancing, or spilling soup on him, or correcting him, or saying something rude. It’s just how Inaho is. He smiles at the memories.

Slaine loves him.

“I love him.” It feels good to finally say it out loud, to tell somebody, to admit it to himself. 

_Oh, god. I love him so much._

Inko nods. “You make him more human, Slaine. He has actual expressions when he’s with you. I just want you to be happy. So take care of him,” she gets up from the bed and smooths down her skirt. “He’s an idiot.”

Slaine is struck by a sudden fear. “Y-you won’t-”

“I won’t tell him, of course! It’s not my place!” she reassures him, Slaine relaxes. “But you guys are in a war. You don’t have all the time that I did,” she gives him a final hug before she leaves, “Be careful, Slaine.”

He watches her leave and doesn’t know if she was talking about the mission, or about his feelings for Inaho. Maybe both. He doesn’t know which is more dangerous.  
Now that he’s fully aware of just how much Inaho means to him, the danger is much more obvious. Inaho is a part of him. It would be so much easier, but he couldn’t stop loving Inaho even if he wanted to. It would be so much easier, less painful. 

_What happens if Inaho dies? I wouldn’t survive it._

Fear, real, powerful, fear, courses through Slaine. He lets the tears flow freely from his eyes. He covers his face and sobs. 

_I’m in love with Inaho._

-

The day passes too quickly. Inaho has researched and prepared as much as possible, which, to his annoyance, isn’t very much. He checked on the sky carrier’s progress and found it completed and ready to fly tomorrow. He made sure it was satisfactory himself. 

He had barely seen Slaine all day. At least when they were both called into sergeant Petrov’s office for a last minute briefing he had seemed better. His face was less ashen, and his overall demeanor appeared to have greatly improved from yesterday. Another night’s sleep and he should be back to normal. Which is good, because that’s all that they have. They leave tomorrow morning, at a time even Inaho wouldn’t be up at. 

So he said goodbye to everyone today. Somehow they had all learned about the mission, so and he knew not saying goodbye would only anger Inko further. He had enough of her yelling at him yesterday. Yuki cried. Inko, Nina and Calm all enveloped him a group hug. 

He doesn’t even know if Seylum is aware of what they are doing. He doesn’t know how she would take it if she knew. Everyone probably thought it wiser not to tell her, and hope they didn’t have to explain their absence. 

He saw her briefly when she mentioned that she was going to see Slaine. Slaine probably wanted to spend time with her before he left. Of course he did. Seylum was very important to Slaine. Even Inaho can see how she is so likable. Her smile is innocent and full of hope. She takes joy in everything. Her default emotion seems to be happiness, and she wants to spread it to everyone. She genuinely cares about people, and just wants to make the world a better place. She loves earth, and wants everyone to be able to as well. It would be hard not to like her, despite her naivety, and somewhat unrealistic ideals. 

Slaine escaped down here for her. Slaine killed his comrade for her. Slaine fought for her. Slaine protected her. 

She is the reason Slaine is here. She is the reason he met Slaine. 

Inaho sighs. He is lying in bed, arms over his closed eyes, thinking. He should be sleeping, he knows. But he needs to make sure he’s done everything possible to help. 

There is one person he hasn’t talked to yet…

He opens his eyes and sits up. 

-

Rayet isn’t sleeping. She doesn’t even really know what time it is. It’s hard to judge in her cell. She knows it must be at least kind of late, because there has been no one to check on her in a while. Food doesn’t come at regular enough intervals for her to accurately determine the time though. 

Maybe that’s their intention. Give the dangerous traitor as little information as possible. That’s what she would do. Actually, she would probably just kill the traitor. Why haven’t they killed her yet? Some misplaced sense of mercy? It would be more merciful just to put her out of her misery. She would rather be dead than live her life in a cell. 

Though, as cells go, this one isn’t too bad. She doesn’t have to deal with people either. Though, she does miss Inko and Nina. They hadn’t really gotten to know each other much, and she was too angry to make friends, but their brief company was her happiest memory. Everyone’s probably forgotten that she even exists. Imprisonment has made her angrier and bitterer. All she can do is stew in her thoughts. She can’t kill martians, she can’t do anything. She wonders if she’ll ever be happy again.

She also wonders what’s going on. Is that strange boy still taking down martian kataphrakts? She hopes so. Though, he kind of freaked her out. He didn’t have any emotions. He fought to stay alive, not for a cause. He didn’t hate martians. She doesn’t understand him. She would die if it would help destroy those who killed her father. But she respected him. He was willing to do whatever it took to achieve his goal. He wasn’t opposed to using people. She knew he used her. That’s why he kept her alive. To be used at his convenience.

But none of that matters, because she is stuck in this cell, and doesn’t know what is going on! The war could have ended for all she knows! Did Princess Asseylum give her speech? Did it work? Is everyone dead? She doesn’t know, and it’s the most frustrating part. Is she just going to stay in isolation until she is put on trial? Will she be given a trial? It depends on who wins, she guesses. 

If the martians who planned the assassination win this war, she might be regarded as a hero. She grins bitterly at the irony. She will live and be free only if the martians win. Otherwise, she will probably spend her life in jail.

Suddenly, Rayet hears the lock in her cell click. She jumps up. It’s too late for visitors, she already determined that. And the guards always knock first.  
She groans and relaxes when she sees who walks in. It’s Inaho of all people. He might be the last person she would have liked to visit her. She wouldn’t admit it, but she missed human contact. And Inaho was barely human. 

“Hello,” he says. 

“Are you allowed in here? What do you want?” she asks. Inaho only does things to serve his own goals. He’s not here for a friendly visit. 

“I’m going to Moon Base.” He says without preamble. 

She is caught off-guard. “What? Why?”

“The higher-ups are worried Seylum’s speech won’t go through. We have to make ensure that it will. And kill those who will stop it.”

“And why are you telling me this?”

“I thought you might like to know what is going on.”

She laughs. “Sure you did. Then why don’t you tell me more?”

“Ok. Count Cruhteo attacked, he escaped. We got attacked in the woods. Martians sent to kill Seylum. They died before we could question them. We also had a dance, and we watched a movie, and yesterday Inko-”

“Stop!” Rayet doesn’t want to hear about the fun the others are having. It’s painful. She could have been a part of all of that, if only she had let go of her hatred. “What do you really want?”

“To know if you have any useful information for us to use on Moon Base.”

“Us? Who all is going?”

“Just Slaine Troyard and I.”

Ah, the other terran/martian hybrid. She hadn’t gotten to know him much, before the incident. But he was fiercely protective of the princess. She’s sure he hates her. Which is a shame, because she feels that maybe they could have talked… She can recognize a fellow tortured soul when she meets one. He was also full of anger and sadness. He fought for something. He had emotions. He probably hates martians, at least some of them, as much as she does. He was much more relatable to than Inaho was.

She doesn’t hate Inaho. He is fighting against martians after all, and is the only one capable of beating them. He is a decent enough person. She wishes she had something to tell him to help him kill the martians. “Sorry, but I don’t know anything. I grew up on earth if you don’t remember.”

“I thought maybe someone told you something.”

“Nope.” She says, thinking he will leave now. But she sees something on his face, something in his eyes at her response. Was that an emotion? Why? She wants to find out what could make Inaho show his feelings on his face. It’s like a puzzle. The only entertainment she’s had in a long time. She’s desperate for anything. So she tries to keep him here. “Why are they sending two boys instead of actual soldiers?”

“…They think it is the right plan.”

Apparently she is on the right track. “They? Not you?”

“We are the right people for the mission.”

“But you don’t think that it’s right.”

“…No.”

“Why? Are you afraid that you’ll fail?”

“No.”

She’s going in the wrong direction. She can tell by the lack of anything on his face. “Are you afraid that you will die?”

“No.” 

Closer. “Are you afraid Slaine-”

“I’m not here to answer pointless questions.”

Ah, very close. “Is Slaine going to ruin the mission?”

“No.” 

She can tell he is preparing to leave. She has probably one more chance to crack him, put everything together. Why did Inaho come see her in the first place? He had to know she wasn’t likely to know anything. He must have been desperate… He doesn’t want to talk about Slaine. She was close when she asked him about dying…

“You’re afraid Slaine will die...” It’s almost the last thing she would have guessed. Inaho afraid for someone else? Afraid enough to come to her? It doesn’t make sense from what she knows of Inaho. But she can see she’s right. His face is as open and she’s ever seen it. “Why? Do you still have use for him further on? Afraid you’ll lose a valuable asset?”

“No.” He says harshly.

Her eyes widen. “You… care about him.” It seems ridiculous. She can’t imagine Inaho caring about anything. Let alone a very emotional, half martian, half terran boy that he almost shot out of the sky. But Inaho quickly turns his head from her and she knows she’s right. 

“He is everyone’s friend. I just don’t want him to die, just like I wouldn’t want anyone else to.”

She thought she had solved the mystery, but then he said that. Nope. That statement was wrong. Which means it’s not friendship…She laughs loudly and darkly. “You love him!”

His eyes widen, and he makes a choked noise. She can’t stop laughing. Tears are rolling down her face. “You love him! You of all people! What even happened on that ship?! Did we go through a wormhole? Did you get struck by lightning? Hit on the head too hard?”

His eyes darken and he turns to leave. She quickly quiets her laughing. He can’t leave yet. “Wait!” She says. It’s a sign of just how deeply he’s fallen that he stops and turns around. He thinks she might still have something that could protect Slaine. “Why?” She asks.

“Why what?”

“Why do you love him?” She’s genuinely curious. She wants to know what Slaine could have possibly done to get Inaho to fall in love with him. From what she could tell, those two were polar opposites and would be at each other’s necks. What had happened? Plus, her heart has softened towards him. He is more human now. Now that she knows he has something he is willing to fight for, something to protect. Something he doesn’t want to lose. It’s like a breath of fresh air at the same time it is a searing burn to remember when she had something like that. 

“I don’t know. Love is illogical.”

She grins, that sounds more like the Inaho she knows. “Yet you fell in love anyway.”

“…I think it’s his smile.” He says. Rayet looks expectantly at him. “And his laugh. And his stubbornness. His intelligence, his hair,” he’s listing things about Slaine like each is a check box. “His face, his embarrassment, his happiness, all of his emotions.”

“So basically all of him.”

He continues like he didn’t hear her. “It doesn’t make sense. I just want him to be happy.”

“Yep. You’ve got it bad. How did it even happen?”

“I don’t know.” 

He’s not lying. She feels bad for him. He’s emotionally stupid and in love. It must be hard. She can’t even imagine what it’s like for Slaine. How does Inaho even show his feelings? “Does he feel the same way?”

“No. He gets angry at me a lot.”

She snorts. “I imagine so. But that doesn’t mean anything.” Her and her father used to fight all the time. “Have you told him?”

He looks panicked at the thought. “No.”

And he probably never will. She feels sad. “Did you try to stop him from going on the mission?”

“Yes.”

“And it didn’t work?”

“No.”

She sighs. “I’m sorry.”

He nods. She can see that he’s scared. Inaho is scared. Because he’s in love with Slaine. This is the weirdest day ever. She half wonders if it’s a dream. But she feels more alive than she has in weeks. Inaho has released all the emotions she was trying not to feel. Inaho, of all people, helped her with her emotions. Ridiculous. 

But Inaho is brave enough to live with loving someone who doesn’t know. Brave enough to come ask her for help. Inaho is in love and scared. So she can ask the question she has been scared to ask anyone else, even herself. “Is Princess Asseylum ok…?” she whispers.

“Yes. She’s fine.”

Rayet lets out the sigh she didn’t know she was holding. “Good,” she says. She regrets what she did. It wasn’t Asseylum’s fault. Not really. She was just a victim, too. Rayet was jealous Asseylum managed to stay so happy even through everything. She hates herself for trying to kill Asseylum. Asseylum was nothing but kind to her. Which had made it worse at the time. But she’s had a lot of time to think. And she thinks that what she did was wrong. All martians are the enemy. That remains true. But she wouldn’t murder a martian infant. And that’s basically what the princess is; so happy and innocent. Asseylum is just trying to help. Martians have used and hurt her as much as they have Rayet. 

Inaho gives her a look. He can’t judge her when he fell in love with Slaine! “I’m sorry I don’t have anything helpful.”

“It’s OK. Do you need anything?”

She laughs. “Love really does change a person doesn’t it?” He turns to leave at her joke. “Wait…! I wouldn’t mind if you came back to visit sometime…” she mumbles.

He smiles and nods before finally leaving. 

She lays alone again, thinking. She feels so much better for some reason. She hopes he makes it back ok, so he can visit her again. She wants to hear in more detail about him and Slaine. She’s sure it’s just as crazy as she imagines it to be. 

She hopes they both make it back ok. Inaho seems so different. If Slaine died… what would it do to him? Love is terrifying, she decides. It changes people, it consumes people, it makes people do irrational things. She thinks of the fear so deep that it was visible in Inaho’s eyes. What it must be like for him to be in love… he doesn’t know anything. He’s scared. She shudders. Terrifying. 

-

Inaho manages to get a couple hours of sleep before he has to get up. He hopes that Slaine got a complete and peaceful sleep for once.

He dresses in his kataphrakt uniform and meets Captain Magbaregde, sergeant Petrov and Slaine in the haner. Everyone is grim-faced. No one talks, other than to do the usual system checks. He and Slaine board the sky carrier. Slaine expertly flips switches. “All systems online.” Inaho is seated behind Slaine. There isn’t much space, but it doesn’t matter; this is not a luxury trip. “Preparing for takeoff.”

“Rodger. Good luck Azure Team.”

They rise out of the hanger and Slaine takes off. There is to be limited communication now, in case it is tracked back to the base. It’s just them now. 

The sky is dark, the starts are out. But their days of looking at constellations are over. As the base disappears from sight, Inaho fights his rising panic. He can’t believe he is in love with Slaine. It’s as ridiculous as Rayet made it out to be. He can’t believe that Rayet realized it from just one conversation with him…

Either she was much smarter than he had originally thought, or he was just being too obvious. Maybe both. She unnerved him. But she was an asset, she was being wasted in that cell. There’s no point in keeping a valuable soldier who is more than willing to fight locked up. She hates martians. She is not earth’s enemy. He makes a note to discuss her future with Captain Magbaredge when they return. If they return. 

He looks at the fluffy blond hair in front of him. Now that he knows that he is in love with Slaine, his mind drifts towards Slaine more than before, which is way too much. He can’t keep his mind off of him. 

He knows he’s panicking. Being in love with Slaine is probably the most dangerous thing he can do in this war. Everything is spinning around in his head, it’s overwhelming. Watching Slaine, being close to Slaine, talking to Slaine, thinking about Slaine. It’s slowly killing him. Slaine is slowly killing him. 

He wishes something could have him from this; every minute he falls harder and deeper. But the only thing that can save him is the boy sitting in front of him, piloting them to their likely deaths. 

_I would die for him._

The thought sends another pang of fear through Inaho. He knows without a doubt that he would willingly, without hesitating, give up his life to save Slaine’s. And Inaho wants to live. 

_I’m going to die for Slaine. Slaine will be the death of me._

Falling in love is scarier and more dangerous than any of the martian kataphrakts he has fought so far. Love is the worst thing that could have happened. And the only thing Inaho wasn’t prepared for, the only thing he couldn’t create a plan for, the only thing he couldn’t stop.  
_  
If I didn’t need him, then my heart wouldn't ache so much._

_If he wasn't a part of me, then it wouldn't hurt to be away from him._

_I love him._

It’s no less scary now than it was before. How can he be brave when he’s so terrified of something that he can’t get away from?

“We’re leaving earth’s atmosphere,” Slaine turns around to look at Inaho. “Are you ready?”

No. 

“It doesn’t matter. It’s not like we have a choice.”

Slaine smiles sadly at him and turns back around. Inaho’s heart aches. 

The worst part is that there really is no way out. Even Rayet’s cell has a door, a hope for escape. But this love was inescapable. Inaho considered every option. Staying with Slaine kills him. Slaine dying kills him. Saving Slaine kills him. Leaving Slaine kills him. He can only decide which option he wants.

What would be better? Being killed slowly by Slaine’s smile, or dying to save Slaine’s life?

It doesn’t matter. It’s not like he has a choice. He’s dead either way. Who would have thought that Inaho Kaizuka would be killed by Slaine Troyard? 

Maybe fate does exist… Maybe he really doesn’t have a choice, can’t change anything. He certainly didn’t choose to fall in love, and can’t change it. Maybe he was always going to meet Slaine no matter their choices. Maybe Slaine was always destined to kill him. 

What he can do is make sure Slaine doesn’t find out. He wonders who else knows. Yuki and Rayet. Inko probably suspects something. He sighs. He’s in love with the boy who will kill him, and there’s no way out. 

“What are you sighing for, Orange? Missing your tablet already?” Slaine teases. 

“No. The change in pressure causes difficulty breathing,” Inaho lies. 

Slaine turns around, eyebrows furrowed in concern. “I guess I’m more used to it, I didn’t notice! Do you want-”

“I’m fine, Slaine,” Inaho smiles at him. 

Slaine frowns. “But-”

“Just focus on flying, Bat.”

“Fine. We should be there in a few hours…” They both fall silent. A few hours until they get there. A few hours of calm left with Slaine. 

“I’m glad your flying is better than your cleaning skills, Bat.”

“Shut up, Orange! You’re the one who makes the messes!”

“I’m not.”

“You are! Do you want me to list them all?"

“No.”

“First of all, there was the decorating incident…”

-

They talk with smiles on their faces for hours. They argue, they discuss, they talk about nothing important. But it’s all important. Those last few hours are important. Inaho needed them. Needed the peace, the happiness, the sense of rightness. Needed to be with Slaine. But then moon base appears on the thermal sensor, and the smiles leave their faces. There few hours are over. 

Inaho pushes all extraneous thoughts from his mind. They are both tense as the approach Moon base. The air around them is still, Moon Base is like a giant, gray parasite on the pieces of the destroyed moon.

“Do martians just let any aircraft fly in their airspace?” Inaho asks. Why aren’t they being communicated with or shot down?

Slaine’s hands grip the wheel tighter. “No. I expected a fight. Either they are biding their time, or this ship is authorized to be here… It is Count Cruhteo’s… But he should have revoked privileges on it by now…”

Slaine turns the ship slowly. They are getting closer to their destination. Still no problems in sight. “Or they know we are here.” Inaho says. 

“…A trap.”

“Yes. It is possible.”

Slaine grits his teeth. But there’s nothing they can do, even if it is a trap. They have to continue on. Slaine dives downward and moves underneath the huge structure. They can see the metal fly by then, dents from meteors marring its sleekness. The satellite belt, made out of the destruction of the moon still in orbit, is visible all around them. The quietness is discomforting. 

Slaine pulls them up to a large metal door on the belly of the base. It’s sealed tight. 

“This is it,” Slaine says nervously.

“It’s closed, Bat.”

“I can see that, Orange!” Slaine snaps. “My father had a code.” Slaine connects to an automated communication channel. 

“Please provide authorization,” a pleasant female voice says. Slaine hesitates, his fingers hovering over the keypad. Then he shakes his head and quickly types in an eight digit number. “Authorized. Opening hanger.” The door slowly slides open. 

“How did you know the code?” Inaho asks.

“I…I watched him,” Slaine slowly directs the ship inside. “He never told me or showed me anything. Every bit of information was important… I wanted to figure him out, I wanted proof that he... I hoped… I thought it might be my birthday or something,” Slaine colors. “You know, like in the movies. Passwords are someone you love’s birthday.”

“Was it?”

“No,” Slaine says emotionlessly. “I analyzed it every way I could. It has nothing to do with me. However, it does seem to be a date of something. Something actually important to him. I’ll probably never know what.”

“You are important, Slaine.”

Slaine smiles bitterly. “Not to him,” He quickly pushes the buttons above his head and flips the switch to his right. “Now preparing to land.”

Inaho braces himself and grips the sides of his seat. The sky carrier lands with a thud that shakes the ship and echoes across the empty hanger. In front of them is just a vacant stretch of gray. Slaine punches a command into the keypad and the hanger door starts closing, creaking and squeaking the whole time. They both silently watch it close. Neither tear their gaze from it even once it is sealed shut. 

“We’re here…” Slaine says. 

“Yes.”

They’re here. This is it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I liked this chapter, I hadn't planned on Inaho visiting Rayet, but I liked the way it turned out! Hopefully I can get more of her in future chapters!
> 
> I think Inaho implies multiple times that he's fighting to ensure his own survival. Slaine fights for Princess Asseylum. But obviously, both of these priorities will change!
> 
> Thank you so much for your comments! They always make me smile! Hopefully the next chapter will be up sometime this week. Thanks for reading :)


	14. Chapter 14

They finally look away from the closed hanger and look at each other. And then Slaine quickly turns to check the air pressure and oxygen levels. “We should be good,” Slaine says, and the carrier pops open with a hiss. They both stand up and get out, still wary. 

Their footsteps are too loud in the empty hanger. They both check the area, guns held high. Slaine’s sigh sounds too loud. They are alone. No one is here. Why is no one here?

Inaho runs a finger down a wall. It comes back dusty and grimy. “Judging by this dirt, no one has been here in years.”

From the other side of the room, Slaine sneezes. Inaho looks over, concerned. Is Slaine getting sick again? But he finds Slaine enveloped in a cloud of dust. He’s desperately trying to bat it away with his hands, but is failing miserably. “I-” he coughs. “I opened the cabinet,” He explains. 

Inaho comes over to look. Indeed, the cabinet on the right side of the hanger is swinging open. Apparently, alone with some old uniforms, there was quite a bit of dust in it. Slaine takes out a uniform. “This is an old style…”

“No one’s been here in years,” Inaho repeats. 

“But why? Why would they just abandon a part of moon base?”

“Because they don’t know about it.”

“Why wouldn’t they know about it?!”

“A personal passcode, a hidden entrance, no personnel here. This place isn’t for usual operations. Did you ever see anyone here when you came with your father?”  
“…No. But there must have been people! Maintenance, cleaning…”

“Yes. But probably a select few. And they’re probably dead. The knowledge of this section died with them.”

“But what would my father be doing in a secret section of moon base?”

“Research, probably.”

“But why does no one know about it then?! What happened to everyone?! It doesn’t make sense!”

“I don’t know. But we’re not here to find out. We have a mission. Do you know if it connects to the main base somehow?” Inaho asks, continuing to look around. The hanger is mostly empty, and there is nothing left to look at. He moves for the door on the left. He checks around the edges for any signs of alarms. He finds none and turns the handle and opens it without a problem. 

“I don’t know…Hey!” Slaine says running after him. “There’s not much security for a supposedly secret section,” Slaine mutters, catching up to Inaho. They are walking down a long, narrow hallway. Gray, rust stained, metal surrounds them. Yellow lights flicker on above them as they walk. Motion censored. The dim lighting, unnatural silence and dusty, dark walls are a bit eerie. 

Inaho sees Slaine shiver out of the corner of his eye. Inaho can’t quite place it, but he has a sense of foreboding. It doesn’t make sense. No one’s here, they haven’t reached the main section yet. So why does he feel like something bad is going to happen? Slaine falls behind him. Their footsteps echo up and down the corridor. They both have their guns out in front of them. 

It’s probably just the combination of the absence of people, and the mystery of the place that’s giving Inaho the feeling. He doesn’t like not knowing things. And he knows nothing about this place. 

Suddenly a huge sound vibrates through the hall. Inaho spins around to look at Slaine, and finds him fallen with his hands on the floor. “I tripped…” He mumbles, embarrassed. 

“Well, if anyone’s here, they definitely would have heard us by now,” Inaho says dryly. 

“Hey! You make a lot of noise too!”

Inaho offers Slaine his hand to help him up. “Not like you,”

“Whatever,” Slaine mutters, taking Inaho's hand. “Like you said, no one’s here.”

Inaho nods. “Do you remember any of this?”

Slaine slowly shakes his head. “No.”

“We need to find where it connects.”

“Maybe it doesn’t…”

Inaho has considered the possibility. He doesn’t like it. That would mean they have to leave and try to find another way in, undetected. “It likely does.”

“But if it’s so secret…”

They both stop. There is a door to their left. There’s nothing special about it. It’s just another door. Inaho pulls it open. 

“Why is there no security?!” Slaine cries. 

Inaho shrugs. They walk in. It’s a laboratory. There are computers set up against the walls. Scanners and other electronic devices are set up throughout the area. In the middle is a long, metal table, full of beakers and heaters and everything else a scientist would need. Towards the back hangs white lab coats and cabinets of materials. It looks like a normal lab. Except for the coating of dust that covers everything. It was obviously very busy, once. 

Inaho tries to turn on one of the computers. Nothing happens. He tries them all. They’re all outdated and dead. Besides, this deserted research lab isn’t part of their mission. It doesn’t matter what they were doing here. Though, Inaho is more than a little curious, and he can see Slaine is as well. But they don’t have time. There must be something here that still works, some map, or anything that can help them. 

They walk towards the back, careful not to disturb any of the substances still present on the counters. This wasn’t planned to be abandoned. They wouldn’t have left anything out if it was. 

More lights flicker on overhead. The room is much bigger than they had originally thought. “What… what is this?” Slaine asks, eyes wide. The room is vast and full of equipment. Shelves and counters line the walls. Lab stations are scattered throughout. The wall closest to them seems to contain jars full of various plants that Inaho has never seen before. Maybe Seylum would know what they are, considering her time with Dr. Yagarai. Either way, they aren’t very interesting. He moves to the next counter. There is a huge metal cabinet that is covered in biological hazard warnings. He does not touch it. Instead, he picks up a jar full of blue liquid, dusts it off and examines it. There is no label. He sets it down and picks up another.

“Inaho…” Slaine whispers from the other side of the room. Inaho sets down the jar and walks to Slaine, who is standing at an open cabinet. 

Inaho’s eyes widen in surprise when he sees what is in it. There are guns sitting in stands. There are rows upon rows of them. Why are there guns in a scientist’s lab? Why so many? He carefully takes one out and inspects it. It has a similar appearance to a pistol, but it definitely is not a normal gun. The feel is different, and there is no clip that Inaho can find. He puts it back and opens the next cabinet. He already knows what he will find. 

He and Slaine open all the drawers on that wall and find a multitude of weapons. Besides the strange guns, they find dart shooters (where are the darts?), some high caliber looking guns, launchers, deadly looking knifes and abnormal grenades. 

Slaine opens the last cabinet and gasps. Inside are canisters that obviously full, or are supposed to be full, of some kind of gas. 

“Your father was developing weapons.”

“Why?” Slaine whispers. Inaho doesn’t know. They didn’t need a scientist to create weapons. And why are they so strange? He kind of wants to shoot one of the guns… but he isn’t willing to risk it. Maybe he’ll take one back with him when they leave, to study. 

Inaho shuts all the doors and moves on. They need to get out of here. They walk towards the back. They spot some tubs with artificial plants in them. There is one that contains a large tree. Slaine has bent down to examine a tube with a flower in it. The tubes are also covered in dust, but the plants inside are fine, even flourishing. It was impressive. This is a much more normal section. This is more what they had both expected of Slaine’s scientist father from earth. 

This place has so many different things going on. There must have been a lot of people working here… What happened to them all? Why was it abandoned so suddenly that they left all of this out? Slaine looks relieved to leave the gun section behind. He is much more relaxed as they continue to pass various vegetation and incubators. They briefly stop to look at the artificial food. It all looks very real, but Inaho is sure it’s just a disguised goop full of nutrients you can’t get from being in space. 

“I wonder if there are any fake eggs here,” Slaine says with a small smile. Inaho is glad he seems to be dealing with this well. 

“They wouldn’t be the same,” Inaho says. 

“Why?” Slaine asks mischievously. “I thought you liked eggs for their nutritional value. I’m sure the fake ones would be packed full of vitamins!”

“… The taste is important too.”

“So you actually like something for other reasons than just its logical value, Orange!”

_Yes. You._

“Taste is important, Bat.”

Slaine laughs. “Whatever you s-”

They’ve reached the back of the room. Slaine’s mouth open in surprise. 

In the middle of the room sits a large structure. It looks like an operating table. Except it is hooked up to tubes that run throughout the floor, and has various electronic devices surrounding it. There is a huge metal sphere above it, which is obviously meant to lower down. 

It’s for a person. 

Numerous surgical tools lay scattered around the tables. Scalpels and syringes and pliers and hooks and scissors. There is a table lined with different colored serums and pills. In the back stands three empty cryogenic chambers, tubes running out of them and mingling with the rest on the floor. 

“Slaine…” Inaho says, and puts his hand on Slaine’s shoulder. Slaine remains frozen. They need to get out of here. This obviously isn’t the way to where they need to go. “Come on,” But Slaine doesn’t move. “He was a doctor. He helped people.” 

Slaine gives his head a little shake and then nods. “Yeah.”

But there was no way to know for sure. They would never know if Dr. Troyard was really healing people, or something more sinister.

Slaine moves. But it isn’t back towards the way they came. On their right is a huge, white door. It is obviously electronic, and the edges are a diagonal across the middle, edged with yellow. Inaho doubts the entrance to the rest of the moon base would be through the lab, but it’s the only thing they have right now. There is a blank pad to the side of it. Inaho touches the screen. It lights up blue but nothing happens. At least it’s still working. 

“Here’s the security,” He tells Slaine. He touches it again. Nothing. No sound, no flashing color. No keypad or instructions or anything. Nowhere for Slaine to input a passcode. “I think it’s broken.”

“You’re probably doing it wrong!” Slaine nudges Inaho away. “Let me see.” He touches the pad. It flashes a bright green and the whoosh open. Slaine is frozen to the spot. They both stare into the dark room ahead of them. The doors close with another whoosh. 

“What did you do?” Inaho questions.

“Nothing! I just touched it!” Slaine still looks shocked. 

“Let me see,” Inaho nudges Slaine away and touches the pad. Nothing. He bends down and looks at it closer. “It doesn’t seem to be a finger print scanner.”  
Slaine touches it again. A green glow and an open door follow. “Maybe it’s aldnoah based?” Slaine says. 

“Yes, that is probably it. It is probably reacting to your DNA. Your father probably programmed it to accept his. That’s why it works for you.”

“Are we going in?” Slaine asks. He doesn’t sound like he wants to. 

“Yes.” What other choice do they have?

Slaine touches the pad once more and this time they step through the open door into darkness. 

There is an office. A desk, chair and computer are against one wall, with a large telescreen on the opposite. There is a cot pushed off to one side. Papers are scatters all over the desk. Inaho looks through them. They are research notes. Illegible research notes. He digs through the pile until he sees something out of place. 

It’s a card. A hand-drawn card. He reads it and passes it to Slaine. “He was helping people,” Inaho says firmly. 

Slaine opens the card and reads it. Inaho can tell that he feels lighter at the child’s drawing and words thanking Dr. Troyard for saving her mom. 

Inaho checks the computer, not expecting much. But to his surprise, it powers on. It asks for a password. Inaho looks at Slaine. Slaine types in what Inaho assumes is the same code for the hanger. It works. 

“It’s very bad practice to use the same password.” Inaho says.

“Well, we’re lucky that he did!”

“Maybe there’s a map of moon base stored in here.”

Inaho clicks around and finds nothing. 

“Move out of the way,” Slaine says, grabbing for the mouse. “It’s like you’ve never used a computer before.”

“This model is very outdated,” Inaho defends himself. 

Slaine clicks on a folder, and suddenly the screen behind them turns on. They both whirl around to look. A video starts to play. A man with messy brown hair and glasses appears. 

“Father…?” Slaine whispers.

Oh. Of course. Now that Inaho knows who the man is, he can see some of Slaine in him. The slant of the mouth, the curve of the nose. He's spent enough time staring at Slaine to recognize these feature. 

The man begins to speak.

-

“I am recording this so that others can know what really happened. What is still happening,” Slaine’s father begins. 

“A recording? That’s cliché, there are much more efficient ways of-”

“Shh!”

“I don’t know who will see this, but it doesn’t matter. I am recording this so that I remember what I am doing this for. I am recording this that even if no one ever see it, there is proof,”

Slaine notices Inaho looking increasingly disinterested in his father’s melodramatic message. He gives Inaho a sharp glare and turns back to the screen. 

“Proof that I existed. Proof that Marlene existed. Proof of what happened.” Slaine’s father adjusts his glasses and begins. “We met in school, Marlene and I. She bumped into me and told me that it was my fault and that I should pay more attention. Those were her first words to me.” 

Slaine’s father smiles at the camera. It’s the first time Slaine remembers seeing a real smile on his father’s face. “She was independent and strong-willed. Stubborn, smart, funny. Happy, so full of life. Her laugh was infectious. No one could resist it, even if the joke was on you. It didn’t matter because she was happy and laughing.”  
“We became friends. I was in school for chemistry. She wanted to be a doctor. She wanted to travel the world and help people. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I just knew that I wanted to do it with her. We studied, we talked, we laughed, and we fought. I loved her. It took a while. She didn’t want to be tied down, she was wild and free.”

“But she realized what I had known since I first met her; that we were meant for each other. That we needed each other. Though, I always needed her a lot more than she needed me. She was a whole person. I wasn’t complete until I met her.”

“I promised her that we would see the world; that we would fix it together. She always got this look in her eyes when we talked about it. It is what drove her. We studied, we made plans. She was smart, much smarter than me. She had so many ideas.”

“We graduated. I proposed. At a lake in summer. She loved the water. She loved dangling her toes in it and letting the minnows nibble at them. She loved feeding the ducks, she loved watching the fish swim and the stars reflect off of it. She loved splashing me and then running away.”

“We got married and prepared to put our plans into action. There were many late nights, nights with no sleep. She would work for hours. She was so excited, so ready.”

“But then she got pregnant.”

Slaine heart stops. Him. That was him. His father’s voice sounds distinctly sadder at that sentence. 

“Everything was put on hold. We were so happy. I picked her up and spun her around, and she laughed. We were going to have a baby. She glowed with it. Instead of preparing for changing the world, we prepared for the baby. She spent hours lovingly painting the room and setting up the house. She would take my hand and put it on her stomach. And when I felt the kick, our baby’s kick, I was so amazed.” 

Slaine’s father holds up an old picture. It shows a much younger Dr. Troyard, with more well-kept hair, less frown lines, happy eyes, and a bright smile on his face. Next to him is a beautiful woman. The picture captured her mid-laugh, her eyes are squeezed shut, her blonde hair is flowing around her face. They’re blissful and in love. 

Mother. That’s Slaine’s mother. He stares gaping at the screen. He has never seen her before. He never got to see any pictures…

“Nine months passed so fast. She had the baby, a boy. Everything was perfect. We were a family, we were happy.” 

“But then she got sick. A genetic disease. It had lain dormant until the pregnancy activated it. She couldn’t walk anymore. I would take her in a wheel chair to see the lake, the baby in her arms. Soon she couldn’t get out of bed. She could barely move. She couldn’t even hold the baby. She would take my hand and tell me that it was ok.”

“But it wasn’t. The doctors could do nothing. There wasn’t anything they could do with their technology. But I had been researching aldnoah in preparation for our trip. I knew of its power, I knew it could save her. Aldnoah medicine was almost miraculous. I began to research it more.”

“I reached out to Vers. It took months to finally get through to Vers Royalty, who held all the power of aldnoah. Time was running out. I explained the situation. I told them of our new born child. I offered anything, everything I had. It didn’t matter. They laughed. I was told that Vers would never share aldnoah technology with ‘terrans’. Marians were superior in every way. Her sickness and our lack of a cure was proof of that. They could save her. But they wouldn’t.”

“Months of working to save her, over within five minutes. I kept trying to reach them, but they would not accept any communications from me.”

“Marlene remained happy throughout. Even though she would never travel the world. Never save it. Never sit up late planning. Never clumsily dance in the living room anymore. Never dip her toes in a lake again. Never get to see her son grow up. She was never bitter. I can’t say the same about me. I became angry and inconsolable. I wish I could redo those last days I had with her.”

“Her mind was the last to go. She didn’t know where she was, who I was, anything. She couldn’t talk. I sat by her side, holding her limp hand. She had a brief moment of clarity before the end. She asked for her baby. ‘Keep him safe’ she struggled to pat his head. ‘You’ll have to change the world without me’ she said. Those were her last words to me before she closed her eyes forever.”

Slaine’s father wipes away the tears that had been streaming down his cheeks. His face hardens.

“It felt like I had died too. Part of me had. I was empty. And the baby. I couldn’t even look at him. He had her eyes. Her beautiful blond hair that had lost its shine with the sickness. He looked so much like her.”

“He was the reason she was dead. If she had never gotten pregnant, the disease could have lain asleep forever. If she didn’t have the baby, she could have been alive, laughing, playing, and planning. It was his fault. I couldn’t look at him. But I couldn’t do anything. I had to keep him safe, for Marlene.”

“My emptiness was replaced with rage, with a determination to complete her last request. I had to change the world. And to do that I needed to take down the Vers Royal family. The people who had willingly let Marlene die. They had the technology to save people, and they refused to use it. The hoarded the aldnoah. They kept the power for themselves. Even their own people suffered. Only the royalty thrived. The system was corrupt.”

“I was presented with a unique opportunity during Heaven’s fall. I worked to bring down the Vers Royalty from earth for years. And then I brought the fight to Vers itself. By that time, I was a well-known scientist on earth. I continued my research of aldnoah on Vers. No one had any idea I was the same man who they had refused to help years ago.”

“I brought the boy with me, I kept him safe, I fulfilled her wishes. He looked more unbearably like her every day. I kept my distance. He reminded me of everything I lost. He was the reason.”

“I did the research they wanted. But the work I was doing was only to benefit the privileged. They would not let the research reach earth, or anyone without aldnoah.”

“I began research of my own. I was gifted this lab on moon base, and scientists who felt the same way as I did helped. There were many who hated the royal family. We made amazing breakthroughs. We worked with artificial atmosphere and food, hoping to make mars livable once again. But mostly we worked with aldnoah. Aldnoah could be used to cure almost anything if it was harnessed correctly. We could have eradicated all sickness and disabilities all over the world if we could properly research aldnoah. We brought many ill citizens in to heal them, unknown to the royal family. I saved them like I couldn’t save Marlene.”

“I wondered about the artificial implantation of aldnoah. If anyone can have aldnoah in their genes, it would remove the royal family’s power. I researched and experimented, and while there were no definite results, the idea was promising. Aldnoah could be used for so many wonderful things. And it was being kept for a select few.”

“I was angry. So angry and broken. It was all I could do not to kill the royal family then and there. But I knew more would just take their place. I had to take them down slowly and completely. I began creating weapons. Aldnoah weapons. They proved very effective. Aldnoah was a great healer, but it was also a great poison if twisted. Aldnoah is transferred via the mouth, making it an effective killing tool. Anyone who does not genetically carry aldnoah can inject themselves with the poison, and transfer it to someone else. Aldnoah is a one way transfer, so there was no risk of reinfection.”

“Many Orbital knights fell to that method, easily seduced. But it was slow, inefficient and drawing too much attention. A new plan came to light. We could get the royal family to destroy themselves. A war with earth would weaken them, distract them, and let others seize control. Perhaps earth would even win, destroying this hierarchy forever, giving everyone access to aldnoah.”

“We began to plant seeds of ideas in their ears. Earth has all the resources, earth doesn’t deserve them, terrans are greedy, evil, and stupid. They want to hear it. They want this war. As of now, there is no reason for it, though. They will not attack unprovoked. It is a slow plan, but it is in progress. It will succeed, one way or another. This evil society will be eradicated.”

“I will change the world, I will use aldnoah to help everyone, not just the rich and powerful. It will be a just, fair world. It will be a world Marlene would love. I will fix it for her. Even though she will never see it. The plan is in effect. The world will change. This is documentation for the future. If the royal family hadn’t refused a simple man from earth’s plea to save his dying wife, in ten years they may still have been in power. But with how things are progressing, that will not be the case. This is my vengeance. I hope they see this before they die. They could have saved her, and none of this would have happened. I hope they see how we have been slowly taking them apart. You could have saved her!”

The screen goes black. 

-

“Why?!” Slaine sobs, slamming his fist into the wall. “Why?!” He spins wildly. He wants to hit something. He smashes his hand into a table full of equipment, it all breaks and crashes. Something cuts his hand. He doesn’t even feel it. He needs to destroy every trace of his father. “He started the war. He wanted Princess Asseylum to die! He’s the reason…!”

Inaho takes a step towards him. Slaine steps back. He angrily sucks the wound on his hand. He’s too angry, too hurt. But Inaho grabs him and pulls him towards him. He wraps his arms tight around Slaine, one hand resting on the small of his back, the other around Slaine’s shoulders. It’s very strategic. Slaine is effectively pinned against Inaho, struggling won’t do much good. 

Inaho is… hugging him. 

And he doesn’t let go. 

It only takes a moment for Slaine to bring his arms, which had been dangling limply at his sides, around Inaho, pulling them tighter and closer together. He buries his face in Inaho’s neck and cries. Inaho is his lifeline. 

“Why?” He sobs, mouth moving against Inaho’s neck. “It’s not fair.” Inaho’s neck tastes salty from all of Slaine’s tears. 

“It’s not,” Inaho agrees.

“He hated me. I killed her. I killed my mother!” Slaine fists his hands in Inaho’s uniform.

“No you didn’t. Based on his description of her disease, it would have eventually happened. He just needed something to blame. You didn’t kill her, Slaine.”

The tears come harder. He has always known his father didn’t like him. That wasn’t new information. He had dealt with that his whole life. He’s not crying for him. He’s crying for Princess Asseylum, who had nothing to do with this, and was still targeted by his father. He’s crying for his mother. His mother who died a needless death. His mother who loved Slaine, who wanted Slaine. He’s crying for the lost family that he could have had, the family he could have had.

Inaho reaches up and hesitantly puts his hand on the back of Slaine’s head. When Slaine tightens his grip on Inaho, Inaho lightly runs his hand down Slaine’s hair. He does it again. And again. With every gentle stroke, Slaine feels his anger and despair lessen, leaving just sadness. Inaho is saving him. 

Slaine cries and cries into Inaho’s neck. Inaho rests the side of his head against Slaine’s and runs his fingers through Slaine’s hair. They are gripping each other tightly, as if the world depends on it. And maybe it does. 

Slaine clings to him, afraid Inaho will let go. 

_Don’t let go. Never let me go._

Finally Slaine’s tears stop. He doesn’t have any left. None for his father at least. He’s used to dealing with pain. He knows how to push it away. He hasn’t cried away all of the pain yet, but it has diminished for now. 

They are still holding each other. Lighter now, softer, but with no less meaning. Inaho’s hand has slowed in Slaine’s hair, and his fingers tangle themselves in it. Slaine nuzzles into Inaho’s neck. It smells like Inaho. It feels like Inaho, it feels like everything he needs. Inaho’s hair brushes tickles his face. He wants to stay like this forever. His mouth is pressed against Inaho’s skin. He wants to kiss it. 

“Slaine…” Inaho says softly. 

Slaine moves his face from Inaho’s shoulder to look at red eyes. He gives Inaho a shaky smile. Their faces are inches apart. The hand that was in was in Slaine’s hair moves to his back and begins tracing soft circles. Slaine trails his hands down Inaho’s back and pulls him closer. 

“You’re a terrible hugger, Orange,” Slaine lies. “Have you even ever hugged someone before?”

Inaho looks offended, but he doesn’t release Slaine and his hand doesn’t stop moving lightly over Slaine’s back. “I hug Yuki all the time,” he says. Slaine can feel Inaho’s breathing on his face. 

Slaine chuckles. “That doesn’t count. It’s more like she hugs you, and you stand there like a stiff board.”

“That’s not-“

Inaho stops talking because Slaine has leaned forward and gently rested his forehead against Inaho’s. Inaho’s eyes close. Slaine moves one hand to cup Inaho’s cheek. Inaho leans into the touch. 

How is it possible to love someone this much?

Slaine trails his fingers down Inaho’s face. “Thank you, Inaho.” He says and releases him. Inaho also drops his hands from Slaine’s back. They step apart. 

The moment they do the distance between them feels like miles. Slaine wishes he was back in Inaho’s arms. Wishes he could feel Inaho pressed against him again, feel Inaho’s skin against his lips. Wishes he could tell Inaho that he loves him. 

But they are on a mission in a secret laboratory on moon base created by the dead father who hated him and started this whole war. So now might be an even worse time that usual for Slaine to lose control and press his lips against Inaho’s. 

Still, he’s amazed at how Inaho’s hug has healed him. He might have destroyed the whole place if he was alone. He would have gone crazy. 

Inaho keeps him sane. Inaho keeps him grounded. Inaho keeps him safe. He feels it in his soul, how deeply he needs Inaho. Inaho is a part of him. 

His father started a war to avenge the woman he loved. Slaine knows at that moment that he would do the same for Inaho. He would start wars, end wars, anything, everything, for Inaho.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was hard to write. I went back and changed it many times, so I hope it turned out ok.
> 
> I needed to get Slaine's father's story out there, to set Slaine up for some of his development later. Without a video or diary or something, it would have taken Inaho and Slaine forever to piece it all together, and they didn't have that time, so I resorted to making Dr. Troyard using a very cliche method, haha. I hope the backstory was alright, though!
> 
> Slaine and Inaho's hug at the end was one of my favorite things to write! I really liked the way it turned out! :)
> 
> But yeah, this chapter made me pretty sad. I think this knowledge will take it's toll on Slaine eventually, and slowly. But he's strong, and he's faced this kind of pain his whole life. He's always been told he's worthless and was never really loved. So this wouldn't destroy him. It would just kind of confirm what he already knew about his father and about himself. So, while he gets sad and angry, it doesn't have a huge negative impact like it would on someone else. 
> 
> Well, I hope you guys liked it! As always, thanks for the comments, they're always so great! You guys are the best :) I'll have the next chapter up sometime later this week!


	15. Chapter 15

They walk back through the lab. There is obviously no entrance to moon base from this area. They will have to go back, try something else, make a new plan…

They walk past all the plants and food and weapons and everything left of Slaine’s father. He was trying to help the world… he was trying to make things fair…

Was it still wrong to start a war if the end goal was right? Slaine doesn’t know. Everyone should have access to aldnoah. People shouldn’t die when they could be saved. But Princess Asseylum also shouldn’t have to be sacrificed for that goal. 

His father went mad with grief. He was broken by the death of his wife. He was angry, he was out for revenge. That is what started the war. 

This wasn’t black and white. War is evil. His father’s desire to help the world was good. His father did good things. His father’s methods were wrong. His father did horrible things. But they might have been the only way… how else would the royal family ever relinquish their control on aldnoah? His father hadn’t even tried a peaceful way. He started the war for revenge just as much as he did to help.

_Is there only one right path? Or do the ends justify the means?_

Slaine doesn’t have the answer. And it doesn’t matter. The war already started. They’re here to end it, to save Princess Asseylum. 

Maybe if her message gets through, it will work. She can be the peaceful solution. She is good and kind and wants to help. She can let the world live together, share the power of aldnoah. Yes. There is a way to help without following the wrong path. She can do it. Princess Asseylum can do it. 

As long and he and Inaho can complete their mission. 

He walks over to Inaho, who is looking at something in a far corner they had not explored. 

“What is this?” Inaho mutters, blocking Slaine’s view. “It appears to be some form of aldnoah technology, but it’s different…”

Inaho moves and Slaine can see what it is. Inaho reaches out to touch it. 

“No!” Slaine cries and runs towards Inaho just as Inaho’s hand touches the miniature hyper gate. Slaine barely manages to grab Inaho’s hand before a blue light envelops the room.

-

Inaho is surprised to open his eyes and be in a completely different place. He is in another corridor, however, this one looks significantly nicer than Dr. Troyard’s.   
Ah, it must have been some kind of hyper gate. 

Slaine is sprawled on the floor next to him. Good. Everything worked out. He takes out the small tablet he was provisioned for the mission. He needs to know if they are still in moon base.

“Orange!” Slaine yells, standing up. “You can’t just touch things without knowing what they do! I don’t know how it works! We could have been separated!”   
Inaho feels a distant wave of annoyance pass through him. Why? 

He ignores Slaine and finishes calculating their location. “It appears that we are still in moon base. I assume it was a hyper gate. But due to its size, it is only capable of teleporting short distances. It must have been used to get to the rest of moon base.”

The annoyance grows. “Just because it turned out ok doesn’t make you any less stupid!”

Inaho is not annoyed. In fact, he’s pretty pleased that he managed to find what they had been looking for. So why?

He looks at Slaine’s angry face. 

_Ah._

Slaine continues ranting. “You can’t just-”

“Slaine,” Inaho says warningly. 

“What?!” 

Huge flash of irritation. 

“You were touching me when we entered through the hyper gate.”

“Yeah, so?!”

“I can feel you.”

“What are you talking about, Orange?!”

“It must have formed a neurological connection between us. I can feel your annoyance with me.”

Slaine’s face goes ashen. Panic that is not his own shoots through Inaho. “What?! B-but I don’t feel anything!” Slaine looks at Inaho’s impassive face. “Oh. Great. Well, it’s good to know you really don’t have any feelings!”

The accusation stings. Slaine has made similar comments before. In fact, most everyone has. But it hurts when it comes from Slaine. Does Slaine really think Inaho is like a robot? Just because he doesn't express his feelings well, doesn't mean he's emotionless. “I think it’s only intense feelings that make it across. It’s most likely temporary.”

“Great,” Slaine mutters. “You can read my mind but I can’t read yours.”

“I can’t read your mind. I told you, it’s probably only feel-”

“I got it, Orange!” Slaine snaps. Annoyance. Slaine realizes his mistake, and Inaho feels him try to pull his emotions away. 

This is going to complicate the mission. Slaine is full of emotions. He won’t be able to turn them all off. And Inaho has one very intense emotion that Slaine absolutely cannot feel from him. One that floods through him almost any time he looks at Slaine. The moment he realized what happened, he locked it far, far away inside him.   
Don’t think about it. 

“How are we going to get back?” Slaine asks, very neutrally. 

Inaho taps his fight against the wall to his right. It rings hallow. “Thought so.” He opens the panel. A small room with a similar hyper gate lays behind it. “They had to have a way to get back and forth.”

Slaine sighs. “Whatever. Let’s just find what were here for.”

They walk silently. 

Inaho wonders about the video they just saw. 

How much of that was real? How much was the ramblings of an obviously ill man? 

The part about the weapons was obviously true, as was the laboratory. But Inaho isn’t sure he can believe everything else. Anger had obviously twisted the man’s mind, it could have distorted memories. Inaho is almost positive that this war would have happened with or without Dr. Troyard’s help. 

Inaho has nothing but disdain for the man. How could he neglect Slaine for such an irrational reason? That man may not be sole cause for the war like Dr. Troyard believed he was; but he was the root cause for all of Slaine’s misery. 

He never gave Slaine the attention and love Slaine obviously craved. And then he died and left Slaine in an unfamiliar, hostile territory alone. In which Slaine suffered multiple abuses. 

It was that man’s fault. If Dr. Troyard really wanted to change the world, he should have started with making sure his son was safe. 

Slaine has an amazing ability to hold pain, though. And Inaho isn’t happy about it. Yes, it makes things simpler in situations like this when Slaine needs a calm head. But it also means that he has suffered enough that even this seemed blunted. It means that he is practiced in hiding his pain. And Inaho has read enough articles to know that containing your feelings isn’t healthy. He doesn’t want Slaine to have had suffered so much, to become numb to pain, to have gone through all of this. But he can’t change Slaine’s past. 

And somehow, despite everything Slaine has gone through, he still manages to laugh and smile and see the best in the world. He still has hope, and joy. He doesn’t shy away from people, even though he’s only ever been hurt by them. He’s still passionate, and gentle, and alive, and Slaine. And Inaho loves him.

They go through a narrow doorway, careful not to touch, and come to a large storage room. Boxes and crates are piled high around the room. They try to find their way out of the maze of containers. 

And suddenly sadness. It startles him, this abrupt emotion that is not his. “It was the day she died.” Slaine says.

“What?”

“The password. I calculated it. It makes sense.”

“Ah.”

Slaine’s sadness is flowing through him. But he can’t let himself feel. Can’t let Slaine feel him react to the sadness. Can’t let Slaine feel how he just wants to take him in his arms and-

He looks at Slaine. Slaine doesn’t seem to have noticed anything. He’s so full of his own emotions, he might never notice Inaho’s small slips. 

“It was genetic.”

“What?”

“Her disease. What if… what if I have it?”

Panic. Fear. More panic at the panic and fear that is all his own. It was too sudden, too unexpected to hide them. They course free and strong through him. They mingle with Slaine’s own, different, panic and fear. They bounce off each other, twist around each other, combine with each other and Inaho freezes with all the emotion. 

He knows Slaine can feel him. They look at each other. Inaho reaches out a hand to put on Slaine’s arm. It’s a precarious action, but the emotions swirling around in him are too strong. He needs to touch Slaine, it’s as much to comfort himself as it is Slaine. 

The moment they touch, the feelings intensify ten-fold. Inaho can’t see, it’s too much, he can feel all of Slaine. He can see just how deep his hurt goes, how well-hidden it is, the huge quantity of it. It's like a huge swirling black hole inside of Slaine.

They gasp and Inaho quickly yanks his hand away.

They keep walking, not looking at each other. Slaine is embarrassed, Slaine is scared. Inaho hopes that Slaine hadn’t seen anything other than fear inside Inaho. Judging by his negative, but reasonable, emotions, he hadn’t.

They walk. They keep their feelings hidden. They walk. Inaho feels Slaine struggling with it. Every once in a while he gets a flash of something. 

Slaine is made of emotions. This must be almost impossible for him.

“Here,” Slaine says, holding out a piece of paper towards Inaho. 

Inaho reaches for the paper.

Slaine jerks his hand away. “Don’t!” He yells. Inaho stops moving in surprise. “Don’t touch me…” He says softer.

Those words hurt more than they should. “Yes, the connection seems to be stronger when we touched.”

_I need to be more careful about Slaine touching me too…_

Inaho slowly grabs the paper, avoiding Slaine’s fingers. 

“It’s the password,” Slaine explains. 

That would explain the numbers on the paper. 

“Just in case…” Slaine says. 

“I won’t need it.”

“You might! You don’t know what will happen!”

“Whatever happens it won’t be that.”

“Just keep it!” 

“Fine. But you could have just told it to me.”

“What if you forgot it?!”

“I wouldn’t.”

“Oh, right. You’re a robot, I forgot.” Slaine instinctively goes to bump Inaho’s shoulder at the joke. Inaho winces away and Slaine freezes. 

Hurt comes off Slaine. Inaho feels the same, their casual touches have become something to fear. 

They walk, keeping a very safe distance between each other. Inaho has no doubt that if they touched for long enough, Slaine would be able to see the poorly buried love. They walk through containers piled to the ceilings. 

Eventually they come to another door. They move quickly and press their backs to either side of the door, checking for danger. The door is electronic, but there is no way either of them knows the code. 

Inaho listens through the door. “There are voices. Three, four, men I’d say.”

“What are we going to do?”

“Wait for one to come out. As long as there is a communication system in there, all we need to do is inject the program onto it, giving us control of the broadcast channel.”

So they wait on either side of the door. Inaho senses brief rushes of feelings that he can’t name coming from Slaine. 

Inaho does not look at Slaine. Does not think about Slaine. He does advanced calculations in his head. He creates a plan for any scenario he can imagine. What if someone finds them before the door opens? Shoot them, hope no one hears the noise. Disable them, take their badge. What if there are more men in the room? Drag them out into the open area, pick them off one by one. What if there is nothing useful in the room? Keep looking. What if Slaine is in danger?   
His stomach twists. Don’t think about it.

Finally Inaho hears footsteps growing louder on the other side of the door. He signals Slaine. They both stand tense, guns drawn. 

The door whooshes open. A man’s laughter fills the quiet. “Yeah, yeah!” The middle aged man says good-naturedly. “I’ll be right back!” He waves back to the other men, a smile on his face. 

Inaho shoots him in the chest. The smile turns to a look of surprise as blood pools under his uniform. He falls. The other three men in the room spring up from their seats. Inaho shoots the nearest one in the head. 

_Don’t let Slaine kill. Don’t let Slaine get killed. Don’t think about Slaine. Don’t touch Slaine. Don’t die._

Inaho can’t think. It’s too much. All his priorities conflict with each other. 

A shot explodes near his head. It was very poor aim. A man in back is shakily holding a gun up, preparing to fire again. These men aren’t soldiers. They must be communication officials, or some other type of non-combatant official. Maybe they don’t need to kill them-

The man falls, blood spewing from his head. Slaine is steadily holding his smoking gun. Inaho feels no remorse, no sadness, in their link. He fights down his own dread. 

The last man is cowering against the wall, tears in his eyes. Slaine shoots him without hesitation, he falls with the others. 

He can’t focus on Slaine right now. Slaine did what was needed. Slaine did what he was assigned. 

He looks at Slaine. Don’t look at Slaine. He looks at the room. The bodies all lay lifeless on the floor. The seats in front of the large telescreen are empty. Snacks lay half eaten on the consoles. 

They got lucky. This is a communications hub. Probably for supply deliveries, considering the warehouse they had come through. 

Inaho takes the computer chip out of his uniform and puts it into the control panel. He lets the program run. 

Hopefully, no one will discover the dead men until after Asseylum has delivered her speech. No one will inspect the computer until it is too late. However, that isn’t guaranteed. So, if their invasion is discovered, there is another program written into the computer. One designed to extract martian information. It is a much more obvious threat. So, it will likely be found first, and assumed that it was the intention. The less obvious program will be ignored. 

The software finishes. Inaho takes the chip. “Let’s go.”

They carefully walk back through the maze of containers. All they have to do is get back to the ship. They shouldn’t run into anybody else. The main mission is complete. They can leave now.

Relief is connecting both of them. Slaine’s relief is like a sunny yellow glow. And then Inaho feels something he has never really felt like this before: hope.   
Slaine hopes this will end the war. Slaine still has so much hope.

It’s a good feeling. These are the feelings that Slaine should have. Not the sadness, and fear, and panic, and nothing. It really isn’t that bad being connected to Slaine. The closeness. To feel Slaine’s emotions inside of him. He wonders what it would feel like to touch Slaine right now. Certainly not bad…

Slaine smirks at him. Inaho immediately shuts down all thoughts. “What?”

The smirk doesn’t leave Slaine’s face. “Oh, nothing, Orange.”

Inaho feels Slaine’s laughter, Slaine’s happiness. Slaine doesn’t try to hide it. He gives its full force to Inaho. It’s bright, it’s wonderful, it’s addicting. It’s amazing. Slaine is amazing. He lov-

“You’re feeling something,” Slaine says. “I can feel you trying to pull back.”

Curiosity. “It’s nothing, Bat.”

“Sure it is,” Slaine nudges Inaho with his shoulder. This time neither shies away from the contact. It feels good. It doesn’t blind Inaho with its power like the fear and pain did. It’s a constant hum of warmth, filling him with Slaine’s joy. Inaho is completely addicted. He never wants to lose this. They walk with their shoulders still touching. 

“You can’t lie when I can read your mind.” Slaine tells him.

“You can’t read my mind. And I don’t lie.”

Slaine laughs. Laughs. It echoes through Inaho. “Do want me to list all the times you have lied?”

“No.”

“There was that time when when-”

“You lied about me being a bad hugger.”

“That wasn’t a lie, Orange.”

“Yes it was.”

“How do you know? Did you research hugging methods on your tablet?” Slaine smiles. The feeling fills him. He wants to hold on to it. Never let it go. He’s drowning in it. He smiles back, and Slaine grins wider; their emotions amplifying each other’s. 

Inaho presses his shoulder harder into Slaine’s. 

“I have other sources of information, Bat.”

Slaine snorts, not moving his shoulder from Inaho’s. “I’m sure you do, Orange.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing,” Slaine smirks. “Just because you give one decent hug doesn’t mean you’re not a terrible hugger. It was probably just luck.”

“It was not.”

Sometime during their conversation they had stopped walking. Sometime during their conversation he found himself facing Slaine, still close enough to feel the feelings vibrating between them.

“Prove it,” Slaine mutters, face inches from Inaho’s. 

Inaho slowly moves his arms around Slaine’s waist and pulls him closer. 

Slaine wraps his arms behind Inaho’s neck, and Inaho can feel Slaine’s breath on his face.

“See?” Inaho whispers. 

“This proves nothing.” 

“Yes it does.”

“I’m the one being hugged. I get to decide,” Slaine says softly, and Inaho feels Slaine’s fingers lightly touch his hair. Inaho grips Slaine tighter.

Slaine looks at him and Inaho can’t look away. Slaine’s eyes are so blue. Something courses through Inaho. Something strong, and powerful, and wonderful, and-  
He immediately shuts all emotion down. He releases Slaine and quickly steps back. That was stupid. 

Slaine glares at him and immediately closes off his own emotions. “Point proven,” Slaine says blandly.

Inaho feels empty.

They keep walking. Inaho keeps not thinking about Slaine’s smile, or Slaine’s fingers in his hair, or how he felt when he was so connected to Slaine. 

He wants to hug Slaine again. He wants to feel Slaine again. 

Then he gets a flash of pain. 

He looks to Slaine, but the other boy is walking like nothing is wrong, face completely blank. Inaho ignores it. 

But then again. And again. Stronger, longer. 

Inaho stops. “Slaine.”

Slaine keeps walking. “What?”

By now it’s a constant pulse. It’s faint, Slaine is trying to hold it back. 

“Slaine.”

Slaine stops. “It’s just a cut, ok?! I’m fine!”

He starts to walk again, but then gasps and clutches his hand. 

The full force of pain hits Inaho like a truck. It wasn’t from just a cut. Was Slaine shot? 

Inaho fights his rising panic. Slaine’s pain is horrible to feel. Inaho never wants Slaine to feel like this. 

“Show me.”

“No.”

Slaine starts walking again, not looking back. They need to get back to the ship now. Inaho follows. 

The pain is a constant throb inside of him. He wonders…

Inaho tries to draw the pain into himself. He gasps, and Slaine looks back, eyes wide. “I’m fine,” Inaho says. Slaine doesn’t seem to realize what Inaho is doing. But Slaine seems to be walking easier now. 

They keep walking. Inaho keep trying to pull Slaine’s pain to himself. He hides a wince. 

This time Slaine whirls towards him, eyes full of anger. “Stop!”

Inaho doesn’t stop. 

“Inaho!”

“Slaine.”

“Stop!”

“No.”

Whatever Inaho had managed to do apparently didn’t help. Slaine staggers and slumps to the floor against a large shipping crate. Inaho grabs Slaine’s hand and looks at it, struggling to keep his mind together. 

It’s horrible. The cut is swollen and red and pussy and the skin around it is green. 

“When did this happen?” He demands.

“In my father’s room. When I hit the table,” Slaine gasps out. 

But that was only a few hours ago. How did the wound get so bad? Why was it so bad?

Slaine closes his eyes. 

“Poison…”

Slaine opens his eyes, they’re dim and unsurprised. He had already figured it out.

“Aldnoah is transferred through the mouth.”

He had known Slaine was going to kill him. He knew it ever since he realized he loved Slaine. Love is so irrational. He shouldn’t be willing to give up his life for Slaine’s. That’s not what humans were made to do. But he loves Slaine. The choice between living and saving Slaine is really no choice at all.

“It is a one way transfer.”

Slaine’s panic rushes through him. “No!”

“There is no risk of reinfection.”

He’s going to die. Slaine is going to live. 

_I'm going to die from kissing Slaine._

It’s not really a kiss. Inaho knows that. It can hardly be considered one when the other participant is practically unconscious and dying from poison.   
But his lips will touch Slaine’s. It will be their first kiss. It will be their last kiss. It will be their only kiss. Inaho wonders if he would ever have kissed Slaine if they would have both lived through this. He wonders if the war will end. If he and Slaine could have been happy together in a peaceful world. 

Slaine will go back. Slaine will protect Asseylum. Slaine will help finish the war. Slaine can go back to school. Slaine can be happy. 

He bends down. 

“Inaho!” Slaine chokes out. 

He feels Slaine’s horror and desperation through the pain. But Slaine isn’t strong enough to struggle. 

Inaho presses his lips to Slaine’s mouth. He keeps his feelings securely locked away, even now.

He might have been too scared to ever admit his feelings, but at least he was brave enough to die.

He pulls back and the last thing he sees are Slaine’s eyes.

-

Slaine opens his eyes with a gasp. Inaho is laying on the floor next to him. 

“Inaho!” 

Nothing. How much time has passed?

“Inaho!” He gives Inaho a frantic shake. 

_No, no, no._

He picks Inaho up. His body hangs limply in Slaine’s arms. 

Inaho is still alive. Inaho has to still be alive. 

Slaine can feel it. He can feel Inaho’s connection with him still. Inaho is alive. 

He groans with the effort of carrying the dead weight. He still feels weak, though the cut on his hand looks a lot better. 

He carries Inaho. It’s slow. It needs to be faster. He’s blinded by the tears in his eyes. 

It’s all his fault. It’s all his father’s fault. Inaho died to save him. Inaho can’t die. He’s swallowed by grief.

_It’s all my fault._

He makes it back to the hyper gate. 

He carefully sets Inaho down and opens the panel. He carries Inaho into the room and shuts the door. He closes his eyes and touches the hyper gate, and blue lights up the room. 

He opens his eyes and quickly brushes away the tears that won’t stop falling. 

He looks around at the lab frantically. There must be something that can help in here. Something to help Inaho.

But the lab is huge. There are too many drawers and cabinets and vials of liquid. It would take hours to search. And even then he wouldn’t know for sure if what he found would heal Inaho or hurt him further. Slaine cries angry tears. What he needs to save Inaho is here and he can’t find it. 

He has to get Inaho back to earth. Back to Dr. Yagarai. It’s the only choice. 

He carries Inaho down the long hallway, going as fast as he can, which isn’t fast enough. 

Why would Inaho do this? Inaho should have just let him die. 

_That idiot. He’s so stupid!_

“You’re not going to die! I won’t let you!” Slaine angrily brushes his tears away.

He moves faster.

He gets to the sky carrier. He gently sets Inaho in the back seat and straps him in. He wipes his face again and starts to climb in himself. 

“Slaine Troyard.”

Slaine pulls out his gun and whips around. Who is here? Why is someone here? Why do they know him? He doesn’t have time for this!

He fires blindly, and proceeds to get into the carrier. 

“Whoever it is, your comrade will die.” Count Saazbuam appears next to Slaine. 

Slaine frantically raises his gun. 

“I wouldn’t do that.” Count Saazbuam says, holding up a green vial. “Listen to me, or he will die.”

“That… that can save him?” Slaine lowers his gun. 

“Yes.”

Slaine raises it back up. “Why should I trust you?!”

“I am indebted to your father. Hence, I am obligated to repay that debt. Why do you think I let you come here unhindered?”

So it had been a trap all along… Inaho was right… Count Saazbuam knew they were here, he let them come here. Why?

“Indebted?”

Slaine wonders if he can take the vial by force. But what if he breaks it…

“When war first broke out, fifteen years ago, I came down to earth as a scout. There, I was caught in Heaven’s Fall and mortally wounded. Amidst that cataclysm, where the moon sundered, the earth’s crust deformed and there was nowhere to turn to for help. I was found by your father, Dr. Troyard, and he saved my life.”

Slaine looks at Inaho unconscious, barely breathing. He doesn’t have time. He debates on what to do. What is his best option? 

“This will save his life, I guarantee. Just listen to me.”

Slaine growls but doesn’t move. 

“I have clearly seen the depths of your loyalty to the princess. Fighting Count Cruhteo to protect her. Murdering Sir Trilliam. Ensuring that the assassins are not informed of her survival. It’s admirable.”

“How did you know that she is…?!”

“Count Cruhteo was no traitor. On the contrary, he was a true knight who had sworn fealty to the princess. While I am the traitor who plotted her assassination.”  
Slaine’s eyes widen in horror. He clutches his gun tighter. 

“Don’t worry. Had I wished to kill you, I would have done so long ago, as I did Count Cruhteo.”

“Count Cruhteo… is dead?” Slaine’s head spins. 

“Yes.”

“Why did you plot her highness’s assassination?!”

“It is a lord’s duty to his vassals to fight to expand his territory. I feel nothing but indignation towards the terrans who so offhandedly send Vers luxury items as relief supplies. Culture is the sole domain of earth. Blessed with abundant water and air, overflowing with countless living creatures. On Vers, although technology is advanced thanks to aldnoah, culture has not developed at all. There is no reason that we should not seize the world and its plentiful resources.”

“But there is no need to exploit Princess Asseylum-!”

“It is too late. The war has already begun. Her highness will be a human sacrifice.”

“She is innocent!”

“She is royalty. Her very lineage is her crime. Fifteen years ago, the royal family whipped the knights into a frenzy and sent them against earth. For that, I will make them pay with their own flesh and blood.”

Slaine raises his gun. “Don’t kill her!”

Count Saazbuam doesn’t blink. “We are a people oppressed under a feudal system centered on aldnoah. Our impoverished, shabby country looks with scorn upon a world with a vast history. It’s only natural that Vers, where the masses have been controlled by saying ‘be envious of earth, be jealous of earth, despise earth’, is so corrupt that only through invading earth can its great cause be maintained. Your treatment on Vers can attest to that all too well. The royal family chose war to maintain order on Vers. And then… Heaven’s Fall came about as a result of that war, and my betrothed, Orlane, lost her life! This war is my vengeance. This war is my appointed task.”

Slaine gasps. Count Saazbuam… sounds like his father. 

“You were on an aldnoah equipped ship.”

Slaine doesn’t say anything.

Count Saazbuam’s face twists. “Deucalion. A kataphrakt belonging to Viscountess Orlane that has gravity control capability. It’s aldnoah drive was stripped.”  
Count Saazbuam looks past Slaine. “She was going to be my wife. We did our very utmost. Using the power of the aldnoah that his majesty bestowed upon us, we ruled the people, cultivated the wasteland of Vers, expanded our domain, and tried to amass wealth. But no matter what we did, we would always be limited by something. By water and air. In the time of the people of the ancient civilation that created aldnoah, water and air were yet plentiful.”

“But all Vers has now is an atmosphere that is nearly a vacuum, and what little water remains underground. The more our population grows, production always falls short of demand and we grow ever more impoverished. It was always a fool’s errand to live on that world.”

“But our second emperor, Emperor Gillzeria, was a believer in aldnoah’s power. The royal family, the masters of aldnoah, ruled with an iron fist, and turned a deaf ear to the pleas of our suffering people. And then… the rising discontent of the populace was directed against earth. He whipped the people of Vers into a frenzy, saying that it was earth that was their enemy and the source of their suffering.”

“Horrifyingly, those lies were supported by all. They were the superior race. And the filthy subhumans who hoarded earth’s bounty for themselves were evil. Planning to invade earth, we passed through the hyper gate and gathered our forces.”

“And then, my dioscuria, with its superior flight capabilities, and Orlane’s Deucalion went down to Tanegashima as an advance party. We thought we would be able to take the planet much more easily than we expected. Our people would be pleased, his majesty would be pleased.”

“And then Heaven’s Fall happened. The hyper gate went out of control because of all the fighting on the moon. The moon exploded. I told Orlane to withdraw. But the distortions affected her antigravity device. She couldn’t fly.”

“She told me to leave her, that it was too late. I wouldn’t. But I couldn’t save her. She died in Heaven’s Fall. I was blown away by the shock waves. I landed far away, wounded, ready to die. But your father found me. I don’t know how, but he did.”

“He brought me to his home. He healed me. I wanted to die. But he wouldn’t let me. He told me he knew what happened to me, he watched the recording. It was the royal family’s fault. He told me a story of his own, about how the royal family also stole the woman he loved away from him. He was angry, he wanted revenge. His anger fueled me, gave me a reason to live. We would get revenge on the royal family together.”

“We devised a plan. He became a renowned scientist on earth. I became highly respected on Vers, not letting anyone see my hatred of the royal family. In 2009 I used my influence to bring him to Vers, under the pretense of studying aldnoah. He brought you along as well, though his distaste of you was clear. I could never understand it. You were what was left of his wife. I always wanted a son, Orlane and I were going to try…”

“Of course, he studied aldnoah, as you can tell from this laboratory. I provisioned this myself, with men loyal to me, no one else knows about it. He was very useful in creating weapons to use against the royal family. It was sweet irony to see them taken down by the very power that they cherished so.”

Count Saazbuam taps his finger against the vial. “Apparently he made some amazing breakthroughs in medicine as well. I don’t care about that though. We plotted the downfall of the royal family. Our plan was put into action, and here and now, it is finally coming to fruition. After fifteen long years. Although, your father didn’t make it long enough to see it.”

“I don’t know what happened to him. Finally died of grief, some experiment gone wrong… who knows? I shut down this lab, it wasn’t necessary anymore. It was never the goal. And then there was his son. An orphaned terran on Mars. What was I supposed to do? I asked Count Cruhteo to take custody of you. However, if I had known about his treatment of you, I would have reconsidered.” He sounds mildly regretful. 

“However, the war has begun and cannot be stopped now. Orlane will be avenged. Your mother will be avenged.”

Slaine stands unmoving with all the information, gun held limply in his hands. “Why… why are you telling me all this?”

Count Saazbuam carelessly tosses Slaine the vial. Slaine gasps and desperately catches it, clutching it tightly in his hand.

“My debt to your father is repaid. You may leave, flee back to earth. Or you may join my forces now that you know the full truth.” Count Saazbuam turns and walks away, towards the door that leads to the laboratory. “Do what you will.”

He stares after Count Saazbuam’s retreating form. His father… Count Saazbuam… Orlane… his mother. The royal family. 

None of it matters. Only Inaho matters. 

Slaine spins around and frantically uncaps the lid. He opens Inaho’s mouth and hesitates. What if it’s poison?

It doesn’t matter. Inaho’s dying anyway. 

He tips the liquid down Inaho’s throat. 

He waits. He checks Inaho’s breathing. 

Nothing is happening. 

Tears pool in Slaine’s eyes again. Nothing is happening. 

He needs to get back to earth, now!

He gets in the sky carrier and flies. Flies faster than he’s ever flown before. He doesn’t care about stealth, he doesn’t care about the sky carrier’s limits. He cares about Inaho. Only Inaho, always Inaho. 

He can feel Inaho in their link. A steady assurance that he is still alive, a constant reminder for Slaine to go faster. 

And then his connection to Inaho is severed. It’s gone. Slaine can’t feel him. 

His heart plummets. He spins around, expecting the worst. But Inaho is still breathing shallowly. He’s not dead. Slaine sighs in relief. But he hasn’t improved either.   
The connection must have dissipated. It was only temporary. Just like that idiot said. 

That link was the worst thing that could have happened at the time. It was almost impossible for Slaine to keep his emotions in check. Especially when he was so near to Inaho. Especially when he could feel Inaho, like he was a part of him. Keeping the love that flowed through his veins out of the link was the hardest thing Slaine had to do. So, Slaine should be glad it’s finally gone. 

But instead, he feels a strange sense of sadness. He remembers the small flashes of feeling he got from Inaho. He doesn’t know what they were, but they were strong and light. It was reassuring to know Inaho actually had feelings. It was amazing to actually feel them inside of him. 

And now Inaho might never feel again.

He flies. And checks Inaho. And flies. And checks Inaho. 

He makes it back to the UFE in record time. It is past midnight. He gets clearance and docks. 

He jumps out of the sky carrier. “Help me! Inaho’s hurt!” He yells at Captain Magbaredge who looks like she just woke up. 

She wakes up at that and immediately rushes to the carrier and helps get Inaho out. He’s still alive. He’s still alive. 

She calls for medical assistance. “What happened?!” She yells as a team puts Inaho on a stretcher and push him away. 

Slaine sags to the ground. He can’t stand anymore. He watches the paramedics shout orders at each other, trying to get Inaho’s heart rate up. Slaine can’t move, he can’t answer. He’s exhausted, he’s broken. He covers his face with his hands and sobs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sooooo they finally kissed :'|
> 
> -I wanted to do some kind of emotion connection thing between them, so this is how that turned out! I might revisit the concept in the future! There's a lot of things I want to play around with regarding aldnoah. It's a nice plot device for things like this!
> 
> -I needed Slaine to hear Saazbaum's story. And with him hearing it right after his father's it will have an affect on him. So this moon base trip was basically a way to get Slaine the information that he had originally gotten when he was captured. It will also let me expand more on Slaine's father and the aldnoah research in the future. 
> 
> -I like how I intended this story to be very light and fluffy, but here we are!
> 
> -Hope you like this chapter! I'm super excited for the next few chapters! Thanks for all the comments and feedback, they really help me keep going! :)


	16. Chapter 16

Slaine wants to grab Inaho’s hand. His fingers twitch forwards, but he stops himself. 

First of all, Dr. Yagarai is right here. 

Second of all, Inaho is unconscious.

Third of all, it’s all his fault.

It’s all his fault.

He looks at Inaho’s face. Relaxed. Peaceful. 

He wants to smooth the brown hair out of Inaho’s face. 

But it’s all his fault.

Inaho’s eyes have been shut for over ten hours now. 

He never thought that he would want to see the color red so badly. 

The machine Inaho is hooked up to is beeping faintly with his heartbeat. 

“You should get some sleep, Slaine,” Dr. Yagarai says gently.

How can he sleep when Inaho is like this? How can he sleep when it’s all his fault?

What if Inaho dies when he’s taking a nap? What if Inaho never wakes up?

No. He can’t sleep. 

He feels like he’s being eaten away on the inside. 

-

“How is he, doctor?” Yuki asks tearfully. 

“I can’t really say yet,” Dr. Yagarai responds.

Slaine is slumped in a chair next to Inaho’s bedside. He hasn’t left. He hasn’t slept. He hasn’t eaten. 

Yuki is clutching Inaho’s hand and crying.

“Thank you for bringing him back, Slaine,” she says.

Slaine hates himself. 

-

Inko runs in and hugs him, before hugging Inaho’s unconscious body.

Princess Asseylum comes and looks sadly at Inaho. “He will wake up soon, Slaine.” She says brightly.

Captain Magbaredge briefly stops by and puts a hand on his shoulder. 

Slaine feels numb. 

He can’t even cry anymore. 

All he can do is watch the slow rise and fall of Inaho’s chest, and wait in fear that it will stop.

-

“I can’t do anything for him,” Dr. Yagarai sadly tells Slaine. “There is nothing for me to treat. I’ve never seen anything like this before. He will either get better on his own, or…”

Slaine just stares at the floor.

-

Captain Magbaredge pops another round of Advil into her mouth. Hopefully it will help her headache. 

Unfortunately, there is nothing so simple that can heal this situation, or her heart.

Inaho Kaizuka remains in critical condition. That alone is enough to give her a migraine. Kaizuka Junior, despite being young, and to her great annoyance, is a critical asset to the war against Mars. She knows it, he knows it, one day (if he lives long enough) the world will know it. 

She needs him to live. Earth needs him to live. 

This war is far from over, and he still has a role to play. 

But not only is Inaho injured and comatose, but it appears that the condition was self-inflicted. 

Slaine Troyard’s garbled story did not make much sense, and the boy was too distraught to be of much help. From what he said though, Inaho was somehow poisoned. Poisoned via aldnoah, Slaine kept saying. But who knows? Nothing was detected in Inaho’s body. It was like his body shut down for no reason. If Slaine hadn’t witnessed it, they would have never known it was poison. 

But Slaine Troyard kept saying that it should have been him; asking nobody in particular why Inaho would do this. 

The logical conclusion was that Inaho has chosen to be poisoned. 

And Inaho Kaizuka was not suicidal. 

Inaho Kaizuka valued his own life, his own survival. 

Therefore, Inaho Kaizuka had given up his life to save Slaine’s.

The thought was ridiculous. Inaho had nothing to gain from dying in Slaine’s place. Slaine may be a talented fighter, and have valuable information, but he was nowhere as important as Inaho to earth. And Inaho knew that. Inaho would have known, logically, that if only one of them could make it back, it should have been Inaho. 

By all accounts, it should have been Inaho carrying Slaine’s lifeless body back here, not the other way around. 

Thus, arose the second problem. One she should have seen coming. One she never would have seen coming. 

Inaho Kaizuka was in love with Slaine Troyard. 

This poses a problem no matter how she looks at it. The usually logical Inaho ignored logic and saved Slaine. Inaho’s priorities had shifted. They were no longer stopping the war and surviving. Instead, they revolved around Slaine. 

Inaho’s ability to fight significantly decreased. 

Kaizuka and Troyard make an almost unstoppable team. Together, they could do wonders. If they fight together, it might not even matter as much that Inaho is more focused on protecting Slaine. 

But that’s if they’re together. 

If something happens, if they are separated, if Slaine takes the princess back to Mars, Inaho’s loyalties will follow Slaine. There will be trouble. 

Any way she looks at it, this is trouble. 

She wonders if this happened because she put Inaho in charge of Slaine all that time ago. If she hadn’t, would this have happened? Even as the boys became friends, this possibility never crossed her mind. Inaho was too calculating, too rational, too focused, to fall in love. She doubted that even if he wasn’t fighting a war that he ever would have fallen in love with anyone. Anyone but Slaine Troyard apparently. 

If she could go back, if she could leave Yuki in charge of Slaine, give Inaho and Slaine minimal contact, it might not have happened. Slaine would just be another chess piece for Inaho. 

But she’s not like Inaho. She can’t look at people and their situations in terms of value. Inaho isn’t an asset whose value has deceased because he fell in love. If she had known what would happen back then, she still wouldn’t have separated them. She wouldn’t take this love away from Inaho even if she could, even if it would be easier, even if it would be better for earth. 

Though, it might be kinder to Inaho if she had. He would not be dying right now. He would not live in constant fear for Slaine. 

Loving someone in war is never good. Loving someone in war is dangerous.

And there comes the third problem.

Slaine Troyard loves Inaho Kaizuka. 

This statement is only slightly more believable than the previous. Slaine is much more emotional and easy to read. He is the type to fall in love. In fact, before today, she thought he might be in love with the princess. 

The part that is unbelievable is that he is in love with Inaho. The princess she could see, with her optimistic ideals, hopeful nature, kindness, all the love in her heart.  
Inaho seems cold and uncaring compared to her. Compared to Slaine. Compared to anyone, really. 

And while they complimented each other in the battle field, and even made good friends, she had never, never imagined that Slaine would fall in love with Inaho.  
But she saw just how true it was when he told her what happened, when he sits by Inaho’s bedside. 

Slaine Troyard loves Inaho Kaizuka. Inaho Kaizuka loves Slaine Troyard.

And neither know that they love the other. This she is sure of. It’s like a bad romance novel. Except a lot more tragic, and a lot more is at risk.

She wouldn’t have believed any of this if she hadn’t witnessed it herself. 

But the third problem was perhaps the scariest, most imminent problem.

Slaine is already damaged, already broken. He already has a darkness in him that Captain Magbaredge doesn’t like to think about. 

Slaine has absolutely no reason to help earth, besides the princess’s wishes. He doesn’t fight for earth, he fights for people.

If Inaho lives, Slaine may remain their ally. For now. Until Inaho’s life is put in danger. Until something happens, and Slaine does something like he did in the woods. It could happen at any time. It could happen to anyone. He is unpredictable, uncontrollable, has no loyalty to earth. He would pose a constant danger.

If Inaho dies, Slaine will…

What will Slaine do if Inaho dies?

Nothing good, nothing healthy. 

Grief is a terrible thing. Especially when someone believes it to be their own fault. 

She’s seen a previously mentally healthy man break down, deteriorate, because he had to shoot his best friend. She herself has a hatred in herself towards that man that she struggles to overcome every day. 

And Slaine is far from healthy. The anguish, guilt, pain, hatred, will twist his already damaged mind.

And this isn’t a temporary threat. If Inaho survives this, they will still both be in war. Inaho may still die in the future. This threat is forever. Slaine is a time bomb.  
If Inaho dies, Slaine is capable of anything. 

Therefore, Captain Magbaredge has spent these last few hours preparing for the worst. Preparing for Inaho to die. They will need to find a way to beat Vers without him. They will also have to do something about Slaine Troyard. 

She hates the thought of dragging Slaine away from Inaho’s body and locking him in a cell like an animal, when the man he loved just died.  
But that may be the only option. 

They have to stop the inevitable disaster before it happens. 

But even then, that solution is only temporary. Like Rayet, they can’t keep Troyard in a cell forever. Especially since he hasn’t done anything wrong yet.  
Inaho Kaizuka needs to live. 

But even then, the problems just lessen, not disappear. 

It would have been so much easier if Slaine loved the princess, or Inaho loved Inko, or if Slaine and Inaho were normal boys in school. But instead, the two most dangerous boys fell in love. Those two together is a powerful, volatile, combination. 

This is not a high school love game. It’s not simple, or easy, or clean.

She doesn’t see a happy ending for this story.

The Advil kicks in, making her head ache a little less. It does nothing for the situation, or her heart.

-

Count Saazbuam’s debt has been paid. It feels like a weight has been lifted off of his shoulders. He had no great love for Slaine’s father. He had no great love for anyone anymore, really. But Saazbuam is an honorable man. He can’t in good conscious let the debt go unpaid. They had been brought together by their shared hatred. They had worked towards a common goal, one that was just now falling into place. It was only fair.

They had been allies for years. It must have been fate for Dr. Troyard to be the one who found Count Saazbuam after Heaven’s Fall. No one else could have convinced Saazbuam to survive. No one else could have helped Saazbuam the way Dr. Troyard did. 

It’s just a shame he wasn’t around to see the results of his years of work. It’s just a shame his son is trying to undo all that they had worked for. 

It was unfortunate that Dr. Troyard had died so soon. His research was mostly unimportant to Count Saazbuam, but it had its uses. Count Saazbuam looks at the list of scientists in his hand. They are loyal to him. He will reopen Dr. Troyard’s laboratory. They will continue the research. The power to kill… the power to heal… it has proven useful. He likes things that can give him an advantage. He tries to collect as many as possible.

Slaine Troyard could also be of use to him. 

So, he told Slaine his story. It was all that he could do. Slaine had to come to him by his own will, or it wouldn’t be helpful. But Slaine understood, Slaine was moved by his story, he could tell. Still, Slaine had left. But who knows what will come of it. Nothing, something.

So, Count Saazbuam let Slaine Troyard, and whoever he was so desperate to protect, go. He wouldn’t follow them. He wouldn’t track them. Thus, his debt was repaid many times over. Next time he met Slaine Troyard, he wouldn’t be merciful. If the boy is against him, there is nothing to hold him back anymore. 

The terrans would give themselves away somehow else, he knew. He will be ready, and he will not let anything stop his vengeance. 

-

“He’s going to be alright, Slaine,” Dr. Yagarai says. 

Slaine slowly looks up, not fully comprehending what the doctor is telling him. 

Dr. Yagari pulls up some data on his computer that Slaine can’t comprehend. “These are his vitals. They have improved significantly. He is no longer in a comatose state. He is breathing normally, and his heartrate has increased. He is just sleeping off the rest of it now.” Dr. Yagarai smiles. 

Slaine stares at the doctor.

Inaho is going to be fine? 

Inaho is going to wake up?

“I am going to go inform Yuki and Captain Magbaredge. You can stay here if you’d like. He should wake up in a couple of hours.”

But Slaine is already out the door. He doesn’t even glance back at Inaho’s sleeping body. 

-

Inaho doesn’t wake up like he usually does. He feels groggy and has no idea where he is. He can’t immediately remember what happened. He groans and holds his head. He has a massive headache. 

He sits up, and tries to clear his thoughts. 

_Ah. I died._

But then why is he alive? How did he get back here? What happened? 

He sees Dr. Yagarai typing away at a computer. He turns to face Inaho with a smile. “So you finally woke up, huh?”

“Where’s Slaine?”

Dr. Yagarai chuckles. “Slaine’s fine. Though, he was pretty worked up by what happened. Had to give him some sleeping medication. He was mentally and physically exhausted.”

Inaho sighs. Slaine is fine. 

“What happened?”

Dr. Yagarai looks confused. “I don’t really know, myself. He brought you to use, flew all the way here in under three hours, how he did that…” he shakes his head. “You were in pretty bad shape. We couldn’t get your heart rate or breathing up. Slaine said something about aldnoah poison… who’s ever heard of such a thing? Well, nothing we did worked. Not that I could see, at least. But suddenly you improved. Started breathing normally, pulse was good, everything. It was like a miracle.”

“Ah,” Inaho doubts it was a miracle. “How long was I asleep for?”

Dr. Yagarai checks his watch. “About 25 hours. Not counting your time in space. So maybe more like 28 hours. Everyone’s been really worried about you. Inko and Yuki and everyone was in here just a little bit ago. Everyone except Slaine… he never came to see you once he heard you would be alright. Before that though, he didn’t leave your side for almost 20 hours... Wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t sleep… ” Dr. Yagarai says thoughtfully. 

Inaho stands up. He’s dressed in light blue loose clothing. He’ll have to find his uniform later.

“You shouldn’t move too much right now, Inaho…” Dr. Yagarai says warily. 

“I’m fine,” Inaho tells him. He doesn’t feel great, but he’s good enough, and he needs to find Slaine. “Do you know where Slaine is?”

Dr. Yagarai sighs. “No, I don’t know…you should really stay here, let me check you over…” he says hesitantly. Inaho is already opening the door. “Wait I-!” He sighs. “Just be careful!” he yells as Inaho leaves the room. 

-

Slaine is pacing in his room. Ever since he was informed that Inaho would be fine, that Inaho would wake up soon, all of his despair and guilt were replaced with anger. Anger at Inaho for being so stupid. Anger at Inaho for almost dying. Anger at Inaho for trying to give up his life for Slaine’s. Anger at Inaho for almost leaving him forever. 

It was Slaine’s fault that he got himself poisoned. If he wasn’t so angry, so crazy… it wouldn’t have happened. But it was his fault and he should have, would have, lived (died) with the consequences of his actions. He hadn’t asked Inaho to save him. He didn’t want Inaho to save him.

Inaho did it without his permission. Inaho did it against his will. Slaine was in no position to be able to stop Inaho, and Inaho knew that. 

So, Slaine decides that it’s not all his fault. It’s Inaho’s fault.

It’s Inaho’s fault. 

Inaho is going to live.

Inaho did the most stupid, idiotic, reckless thing ever. If Inaho had died, how would have Slaine lived? 

Slaine is furious that Inaho somehow thought it was a good idea, that Inaho was perfectly willing to die for him. 

Slaine quickly ate something and got a few hours of sleep. And now he’s deciding whether or not he should go check on Inaho, see if he’s awake yet, see if he can yell at him yet. 

And then Inaho opens the door, casually walks in and shuts it. Slaine stares, open mouthed, at him. He looks like he came right from Dr. Yagarai’s office… He is barefooted and still wearing the infirmary clothes. 

“Good morning, Slaine,” Inaho says, like nothing’s wrong. 

“Good morning?!” Slaine yells. “You can’t just come here and say good morning to me!”

“It’s morning, Bat.”

“I know that, Orange!”

“So let’s go get breakfast.”

“W-what?! You can’t be serious! You can’t just pretend nothing happened! It’s been over 24 hours, Inaho! You were practically dead!”

“I’m fine now. We're both fine. So everything is fine.”

“So?! That doesn’t change the fact that you almost died! What gave you the right… who said you could save me?! If you ever do anything like that again...!”

Inaho turns serious. “Don’t tell me not to save you. I-”

Slaine cuts him off. “I know what you’re going to say! You’re going to say you saved me because this is war, and I was still useful and the world needs me and whatever! But-!”

“No. I did it because…” Inaho seems to struggle with his words.

“You’re so stupid! What were you thinking?! What would I have done if you had…?!” Slaine gestures wildly, not knowing how to express how he is feeling. 

Inaho steps forward and grabs Slaine’s hand from the air and twines their fingers together. Inaho holds it tightly. “I’m sorry, Slaine,” Inaho says softly, lightly moving his thumb across Slaine’s hand.

Damn it. He’s supposed to be mad at Inaho, supposed to be telling him what an idiot he is. Inaho can’t just march in here, say sorry and expect Slaine to go get breakfast with him! But it’s too hard to concentrate when Inaho is looking at him like that, when Inaho’s thumb is stroking his own. 

Slaine backs Inaho against the wall, with the full intention of continuing his yelling. But Inaho puts his other hand in Slaine’s hair and looks up at him with his red eyes. Inaho is so close, and his hand is moving softly in Slaine’s hair, and his breath is on Slaine’s face, and his other hand is squeezing Slaine’s tightly. Slaine can’t think right. All he can think about is how Inaho almost died, how he almost lost him.

“You… you can’t just say sorry!” Slaine says, hating the tears that spring to his eyes. He pulls Inaho to him and clutches him tightly. “You can’t… you can’t just…”  


He cries into Inaho’s hair.

Inaho stokes his hair. Inaho holds his hand.

Slaine sniffs and moves his face to find Inaho smiling.

“What are you smiling at, Orange?!”

“You cry a lot. You’re getting my hair wet.”

“You’re smiling because I’m crying?! You’re worried about your hair?!”

Inaho puts his fingers under Slaine’s eye and touches the wetness. “It’s cute.”

Slaine reddens. “You can’t just say that…”

Inaho’s fingers drop to Slaine’s mouth and brush softly across his lips, before sliding down to grab his other hand. 

Slaine’s heart is beating fast, and he can’t stop looking at Inaho’s slightly parted lips. 

He leans closer. 

Their noses touch. Neither pulls away. 

Inaho tilts his head, and there’s no space between them. 

Inaho exhales and closes his eyes. Slaine does the same. The world seems to stop. All he can hear is his heart pounding out of his chest, and feel their breath’s mingling. 

Slaine moves forward ever so slightly and his mouth presses lightly against Inaho’s. 

It’s warm. It’s soft. It’s Inaho. 

It’s over as quickly as it happened. Slaine pulls back, staring at Inaho in shock. They both look at each other, frozen. Neither breathes. It could have almost been an accident… their lips had barely touched…

Then Inaho surges forward and suddenly his mouth is on Slaine’s again. 

Slaine feels Inaho’s lips and immediately kisses back. Their mouths move fervently against each other’s. The kiss is sloppy and desperate and full of anger and fear for the other. It’s every fight they’ve had. Every angry word. Every stupid thing they did to protect the other. 

_Oh, god. I’m kissing Inaho. Inaho is kissing me._

Slaine pushes Inaho harder against the wall. Inaho tangles his fingers in Slaine’s hair and they kiss and kiss and kiss. 

They break apart, breathing heavily. Slaine presses his forehead to Inaho’s and he can’t pull away from Inaho’s eyes. “You’re an idiot. The biggest idiot,” Slaine whispers. 

“That’s not-”

Slaine brings his lips back to Inaho’s. This kiss is soft and sweet. Their lips work slowly and gently together. They learn how the other’s lips move, getting lost in the flow. Inaho’s hand moves from Slaine’s hair and rests tenderly on Slaine’s face. Slaine holds Inaho lightly.

Slaine’s hands roam over Inaho’s back. Inaho’s fingers trail down Slaine’s face and neck. They trace over his collar bone and shoulders. Slaine shudders, and the kiss deepens. They angle their heads, trying to get more of the other. Their lips press together harder and faster. It’s hungry and needy and full of desire. 

Inaho grips Slaine’s jaw and tilts his head to better meet Inaho’s mouth. Their tongues find each other and Slaine groans into Inaho’s open mouth. Slaine feels hot all over. He’s on fire. He can’t get enough.

They break apart and look at each other with heavy lids and blown pupils. “Inah-”

Slaine breaks off with a moan as Inaho begins to slowly, meaningfully, kiss his neck. Slaine closes his eyes and lets his head fall back to give Inaho more access. He twists his fingers tightly into Inaho’s hair. Inaho kisses up his jaw, and Slaine turns his face to capture Inaho’s lips with his again. 

Slaine moves his hands to Inaho’s hips and pulls him tighter against himself. Inaho’s breath hitches and a sound escapes Slaine’s throat when their hips meet.  
They are pressed flush against each other. 

Slaine can’t breathe right.

Slaine’s fingers find Inaho’s cool skin under his loose shirt. 

“Slaine…” Inaho says roughly. 

And suddenly they are on the bed, and Inaho is underneath him. Inaho sucks hard on the skin on Slaine’s neck. Slaine can’t help the noises he’s making.  
Inaho releases his neck and gently runs a finger over the spot he just kissed.

Inaho looks up at him and Slaine looks down at him, breathing hard.

He looks into Inaho’s eyes, and Slaine sees the seas, and stars, and sky, and everything he’s ever needed, in Inaho’s eyes. He’s found the missing piece, he’s found his home. 

Inaho smiles at him. 

_Home._

He doesn’t belong on mars or on earth. He belongs with Inaho.

“Good morning, Slaine.” Inaho says, rubbing a thumb over Slaine’s cheekbone.

Slaine narrows his eyes. “Are you going to ask me to go get breakfast again?”

Inaho leans up and kisses him. “No. I’d rather stay here.”

Slaine presses Inaho into the mattress and kisses him hard. They can stay like this forever. That would be fine. 

Slaine pulls back and looks at Inaho. Inaho’s face is slightly flushed, his hair is a mess, his eyes are dilated, and he’s breathing as heavily as Slaine. Seeing Inaho like this…this might be the best sight he’s ever seen. He could look at Inaho forever. How they end up here? 

Oh, yeah…

“I’m still mad at you…” Slaine mutters.

Inaho kisses Slaine’s cheek. And Slaine’s chin. And Slaine’s nose. “Why?” 

Slaine struggles to remember why he was mad at Inaho in the first place. “Because…” 

Inaho plants kiss after kiss on Slaine’s mouth. Slaine tries to control his breathing.

“Because you were stupid and almost died!” Slaine manages to say between kisses.

“I said I was sorry,” Inaho mumbles, unconcerned, kissing up Slaine’s jaw. He doesn’t sound very sorry.

“You…” Slaine tries to say. But Inaho is kissing him all over. And doesn’t even seem to be listening to him. The idiot will always do whatever he wants anyway. Slaine will just have to be there to stop him. 

So there’s no point in arguing with Inaho, Slaine decides. No reason why Slaine’s mouth shouldn’t be on Inaho’s right now. 

He lays on his side, facing Inaho, who pulls him closer. Slaine wants to get lost in the feeling of Inaho’s lips against his, but there’s something tumbling through his head… he needs to ask Inaho something… he should move his mouth from Inaho’s mouth, he should move his hands from Inaho’s hair…but…

A very distinct yelling comes from the distance. Slaine bolts up, suddenly very aware. “Inko…” he turns to Inaho. “You didn’t tell her you ok yet, did you?!”

“No,” Inaho says, not moving, unconcerned. 

“Why not?! Did you tell anyone?!”

“No. I came right here.”

Slaine curses Inaho. He curses Inko. Suddenly everything he needs to ask Inaho piles up inside of him. He wants to keep Inaho right here. He doesn’t want to leave. What if this was just some heat of the moment thing? What if Inaho kissed him because he was still sick? What if it was just an experiment for Inaho, didn’t mean anything? What if Inaho thinks Slaine didn’t mean any of it? What if Inaho doesn’t mean any of it?

Slaine doesn’t know if his heart can take the pain if this isn’t real. He’s suffered through so much pain already, he should be able to handle this, but he knows that this would break him. Inaho has complete power over him right now, Inaho could destroy him. 

Or Inaho could save him. 

All Slaine wants to do is keep Inaho right here. Kiss him. Figure out what this is. Inaho’s hand rests on Slaine’s chest. Inaho’s eyes are boring into his.  
The yelling grows louder.

“Ugh! Orange! You have to go tell her!”

“Why?”

“Because she’s going to burst in here yelling if you don’t!”

“So?”

“S-so?!” Slaine sputters. He can see Inko kicking down the door and finding them. “Get up, Orange!”

Inaho looks at him seriously. “Whatever you want, Bat.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Yay! I'm so happy! I really loved writing this, so I hope it turned out good!
> 
> -I honestly think it would take something as big as Inaho almost dying for the boys to have their feelings raw enough to finally not be able to hide it anymore.
> 
> -I keep finding myself writing Captain Magbaregde. I like the outside perspective, one from an adult. She's very aware that this isn't going to be easy, and probably won't be the best thing that can happen. Sooo we'll see ;)
> 
> -I really hope you guys liked it! As always, thanks for the comments! :) you guys are great!


	17. Chapter 17

They manage to find Inko before she tears the whole place down. 

Slaine practically had to push Inaho out of his room. And then Inaho insisted in changing into his uniform. Slaine thought they were going to die.

When she sees Inaho she runs to him and gives him a tight hug. Inaho stands there as stiff as ever. 

_Terrible hugger._

Inko rears back and swipes the tears from her eyes. Her face goes from relieved to angry in a heartbeat. “Inaho! Where did you go?! You wake up and don’t even tell anyone…!”

“I’m fine, Inko.”

“How do I know that?! Especially with you running off!”

“He really is fine,” Slaine says, trying to calm her. But blushes at the basis of his statement. He hopes Inko doesn’t notice…

“Whatever! Obviously nothing I ever say gets through to you! At least go see Yuki! And meet the rest of us for lunch!” She growls. 

She gives both of them a very dirty glare and stomps off. Slaine gives Inaho a glare for always getting him in trouble. Inaho looks at him, and his stomach flips.  


Slaine looks away and sighs. “Let’s go find Yuki.”

-

“Nao!” Yuki cries, also squeezing her brother into her arms. Inaho once again stands there stiffly. Slaine wishes he had a camera for proof. She releases him and grabs him by the shoulders to examine him. “Are you sure you’re supposed to leave the doctors yet?”

“I’m fine, Yuki.”

Slaine narrows his eyes and looks at Inaho. He avoided the question. Inaho shouldn’t have left Dr. Yagarai yet. Slaine groans at Inaho, and at himself for not even checking. 

“I’m so glad you’re ok, Nao! You shouldn’t put yourself in such danger!”

“This is war.”

“I know! But you aren’t a soldier! You’re a student! You shouldn’t have to do this!” she says tearfully, but it sounds like they’ve had this conversation before. She isn’t arguing with Inaho. She is arguing with something she knows she can’t change.

Inaho steps forward and hugs her. “I’m sorry, Yuki.”

She cries into his hair, while he stands there, looking very passive. Slaine suddenly feels very awkward, like he shouldn’t be here. 

He looks at the door, judging if he can escape without Yuki noticing. Maybe she never even noticed he was here in the first place…

He glances back, prepared to sneakily take his leave, and finds Inaho knowingly staring at him. Slaine jumps slightly, in surprise of being caught. 

Inaho smiles at him. ‘Don’t go’ his eyes say. 

How can Slaine leave? 

He wants to be near Inaho, he wants to hold Inaho, he wants to kiss Inaho again… It was just less than an hour ago that they were kissing against the wall, kissing in Slaine’s bed…

At that moment, he wants to kiss Inaho so badly he can taste it. Kiss Inaho’s smile, kiss Inaho’s cheek, kiss Inaho’s nose and neck and…

The tension in the air is palpable. 

Yuki sniffles and pulls back. “Why are you smiling?” she asks Inaho in confusion. 

She turns around and her eyes widen. Slaine flushes and tears his gaze from Inaho’s.

Now is definitely the time to leave. 

She turns back to Inaho. “Ooh! Nao…?!” She says, asking an unspoken question. 

Inaho doesn’t say anything. He looks at Slaine, his eyes asking the same question. 

Slaine doesn’t know what to say. Is he just supposed to blurt out ‘Yes we kissed, yes I want to do it again!’ to Yuki? He makes an embarrassed noise and looks at the floor. He hopes his silence and his red face will answer for him.

Apparently it does because Yuki squeals and drags Slaine over to them, where she crushes them in a giant hug. 

Slaine’s red face is smashed into Yuki’s shoulder, but he doesn’t care. All he cares about is Inaho’s pleased smile. 

Inaho wants this too.

Yuki is crying again. “I’m so glad! I’m so glad…” 

Slaine feels his own eyes tearing up.

-

They walk though some unknown hallway in the headquarters. Has Inaho memorized the whole map of this place or something?

Probably.

“Inaho.”

“Slaine.”

Slaine stops walking, Inaho does the same. They face each other. “Inaho… I… I…”

What is he trying to say? What can he say? He can’t choke out the words.

Inaho reaches up and puts his hand on Slaine’s face. Slaine closes his eyes and leans into the touch. He brings his own hand to rest on top of Inaho’s. 

“I want this… I want us…” Slaine whispers. 

So much.

“Me too,” Inaho says against Slaine’s lips. 

And as he kisses Inaho, Slaine feels so happy, so safe, so warm, so perfect. 

He feels like his lips are supposed to be connected to Inaho’s. 

They just kissed for the first time this morning… he should be embarrassed to be kissing Inaho. 

But it feels natural, like he’s been doing this all his life. 

It feels natural, right, to be with Inaho. Nothing has changed. Inaho’s just as much as an idiot as usual. 

It just feels like what they’ve had, their friendship, their connection, is finally complete.

How had he survived without this?

Maybe he hadn’t really been alive until now…

He and Inaho slam into the wall, lips still attached. He feels more alive than ever. 

-

“Finally!” Inko says, annoyed as Slaine and Inaho finally arrive at the dining hall. 

Slaine had to convince Inaho to take the time to fix their messy hair and uniforms. Though, the sight of Inaho with his hair mussed and his usual impeccable uniform much less orderly did something to Slaine. Something he did not want to feel in front of their friends. 

Yuki seemed to know about them… though how she picked it up so fast… Probably from Inaho’s super suspicious smile. But no one else knew yet. He didn’t know how the others would react… And he certainly didn’t want them to be able to tell that he and Inaho were kissing in the hallway just before they came here. 

“What took you so long?!”

“I was kissing Slaine in the hallway.”

_What?!_

“What?!” Everyone yells at once. 

Slaine’s mouth drops open in horror. “Orange!” 

“Are you two together now?!” Inko asks excitedly. Inaho nods. 

Inaho sits calmly as everyone is yelling and gesturing and trying to ask questions. Slaine’s face is burning. It can’t get any worse.

“You kissed?!” Nina squeals in disbelief.

“Yes. See?” Inaho reaches over and pulls down the collar of Slaine’s shirt. Everyone gasps. Slaine is frozen in confusion, until he realizes what must be on his neck. 

He immediately slaps his hand over his neck. “Inaho!” he hisses. It got worse. So much worse. He wants to crawl under the table. “Y-you can’t just-!” 

_Can’t just what? Can’t just display the hickey you gave me after coming back from the dead?_

Slaine groans and puts his head on the table and covers it with his arms. 

Everyone talks excitedly around him. Soon they realize that they won’t get any good answers out of Inaho, and that Slaine is too embarrassed to ask. They calm down, satisfied with the scarce information they got. They can imagine the rest. 

Slaine doesn’t know if leaving them to decide for themselves what happened is any better than actually telling them. But he’s not about to say anything else. 

Once he deems it relatively safe, he sits back up, face still burning. Inko gives him a knowing look and a wink. “I don’t know how you can like someone like Inaho, though.”

“Hey.” 

“You are pretty emotionless, man,” Calm supplies. 

“Yeah, you always have that same blank look on your face!” Inko says. 

“You’re very, uh, impassive, about things,” Nina says. “And Slaine! You’re so… emotional!” 

“I-I’m not!”

But Slaine knows his face is showing his embarrassment right now. And Inaho’s is as stoic as ever. It isn’t helping the situation. 

_Ugh. This is so bad._

Inaho’s hand bumps his under the table. Slaine bumps him back. Inaho interlocks their fingers, and squeezes Slaine’s hand.

Suddenly, it’s not so bad. 

“What’s going on?” Princess Asseylum asks. 

Slaine internally groans. Princess Asseylum and Eddelrittuo have arrived. He mentally prepares himself for a repeat of what just happened. He clutches Inaho’s hand tighter, making sure he isn’t about to reach for his collar again…

“Slaine and Inaho are together!” Nina tells her. Asseylum tilts her head and looks at the two boys. 

“Yes, they are right here... but-”

“No! Together-together!” 

The confusion clears from her face. She claps her hands together. “Oh! How wonderful!”

Slaine agrees with that sentiment. He feels warmed by her obvious joy at the news. 

“I’m so glad that my two dear friends are happy!”

Everyone else at the table nods earnestly, with smiles as bright as Asseylum’s.

Slaine is overwhelmed with a sense of contentedness. His friends, despite their teasing, are genuinely happy for them. He is holding Inaho’s hand. Princess Asseylum is giggling blissfully. 

He can stay here and protect Princess Asseylum, enjoy the company of his friends, be with Inaho… it’s everything that he wants. 

“I am relieved you made it back safe!” Princess Asseylum says. 

“Us too!” Inko says. “…What even happened up there…?”

Slaine freezes. He isn’t ready to recount those memories. He just wants to laugh and hold Inaho’s hand. He has pushed them far from his mind. He doesn’t want to think about all that he learned, from his father, from Count Saazbuam…

Not yet. Maybe not ever.

No one even knows about Count Saazbuam he realizes. No one knows it was him behind the assassination plot. Maybe he should tell someone… But would it even change anything? And then he would have to explain how he knew… 

Now that he thinks about it, he’s surprised that Inaho hasn’t questioned him yet… He dreads that conversation and the probable subsequent fight…

“It doesn’t matter anymore. It’s in the past,” Inaho says.

Slaine looks at Inaho in surprise. That doesn’t seem like a very Inaho-like thing to say. 

“But-!” Inko begins, but sighs and shakes her head. “I guess all that matters is that you’re alive,” she gives them a sly look. “And together.”

“Man, I’ve lost count of how many times you’ve saved Inaho, Slaine!” Calm says. 

Inaho huffs. Slaine would have laughed, but he didn’t really save Inaho; all he could do was drag Inaho’s unconscious body back here. And that was barely enough. And there was the fact that Inaho was dying because he was trying to save Slaine. And Count Saazbuam was the one who actually saved Inaho’s life. Slaine is the one who practically killed him in the first place…

“Hey! We should play a game!” Inko says. She gives Inaho a dirty look. “One that Inaho won’t win.”

“Hey, that’s not-”

“Like hide and seek!”

Slaine recalls Inaho’s apparent memorization of the UFE blueprints, and doubts that he will be any less likely to win than usual. 

“Ok! The loser has to do everyone else’s dishes for a week!”

Everyone agrees, Slaine hesitantly. He’s never played hide and seek, and doesn’t really want to do the dishes. But how hard can it be?

-  


Slaine groans for the third time. He has been looking for a good hiding spot for the last five minutes. It must almost be time for Inko to start looking for them… He definitely doesn’t want to be the first one found, just wondering the halls. 

He finally spots another door, and desperately hopes that this one isn’t locked like all the others. 

He tries the handle. It opens. Inside is a small room and…

“Orange!”-Inaho is sitting on the floor, looking at his tablet- “Get out!”

Inaho looks up. “No. I was here first. You get out.”

“You’re not even playing!” Slaine gestures to Inaho’s tablet. 

“Yes I am.” Inaho sets it aside. “So get out.”

Inaho must really not want to do the dishes either, if he’s this dedicated to playing.

“No! You!”

“Ready or not, here I come!”

Slaine looks at Inaho in panic, steps inside and closes the door. 

Slaine grumbles and sits next to Inaho. “Why do you always-”

“You’re going to give us away, Bat.”

“No I’m not! You are!” Their shoulders touch. “What is this place anyway?” Slaine asks, looking around. 

“It’s the electrical storage area. It also contains controls for certain amenities for Area C.” Inaho says, confirming Slaine’s suspicions that Inaho knew the map. 

“…Cheater…” Slaine mutters. 

“I am not. I simply used my knowledge to secure an optimal hiding spot to avoid doing the dishes.”

“Yeah, yeah. It can’t be too optimal though, if I found it.”

Inaho appears to consider that. Slaine laughs. He quickly silences himself when he sees Inaho looking at him. He doesn’t want to give himself away. 

“I still think it’s optimal,” Inaho says, and leans towards Slaine. Slaine meets him halfway. It’s just a light brush of their lips against each other’s. But Slaine’s heart is racing and he can feel the heat in his cheeks. And the way Inaho is looking at him…

They crash back together and they’re kissing. On the floor of an electrical supply closet for Area C. But Slaine couldn’t care less. All he cares about is the way Inaho’s lips are pulling at his own. 

“Inaho,” Slaine gasps. And then Inaho flips them, leaving him sitting on Slaine’s hips. Slaine looks up at Inaho with a smile. “We both know who the better fighter is, Orange.”

“You can’t make such an assumption from one time.”

Slaine smirks and rolls his eyes, but he doesn’t care. Not when he’s looking up at Inaho’s brown hair, Inaho’s red eyes, Inaho’s lips. He would gladly let Inaho win every fight if it ended up like this. 

Inaho kisses him and a fire ignites. He pulls Inaho tight against him. He wants Inaho closer… he needs Inaho closer. He steels his grip as they kiss, deadest on not letting Inaho go. 

The door opens. Neither boy notices, too focused kissing the other’s lips.

“Ugh!! Why?!” Inko yells and slams the door closed. 

Inaho looks up in surprise. Slaine is horrified. Absolutely horrified. 

“You guys lost, by the way!” Inko yells through the door. “I’m going to find Nina, or something to wash my eyes with…” She mutters and her footsteps fade into the distance. 

Slaine covers his face with his hands. He’s going to die from the huge influx of emotions he’s been put through today. 

Inaho pulls Slaine's hands away from his face. “What, Orange?!” Slaine snaps. 

“You’re red.”

“Yes! I wonder why that is!”

Inaho bends back down and presses his lips to Slaine’s. 

Slaine sighs. They’ve already been found. He doubts Inko is going to come anywhere near here again. 

He tugs Inaho back down and kisses him hard. 

“We have to do the dishes now…” Inaho mutters between kisses. 

“Is that what you’re thinking about right now, Orange…?” Slaine mumbles against Inaho’s lips.

“I don’t like doing the dishes, Bat.”

“Well, it’s your own fault.” Slaine tells Inaho, placing a kiss on the corner of his mouth. 

“No,” Inaho says seriously. “It’s your fault.” As if Slaine’s very existence was the cause. 

“Whatever, Inaho,” Slaine breaths against Inaho’s ear. 

Inaho’s breath catches. “Slaine.”

“What, Orange?” Slaine asks, but Inaho doesn’t reply. He ghosts his fingers over Slaine’s eyebrow. Inaho closes his eyes and presses his forehead to Slaine’s. 

Slaine smiles and hugs Inaho tighter. He closes his eyes and he can feel Inaho’s breath on his face. 

He and Inaho will have to do the dishes for a week. Inko walked in on them. Inaho’s an idiot. 

But Slaine’s never been happier. 

-

“I don’t want to do the dishes.”

Slaine rolls his eyes. Everyone was found by Inko and are all sitting at a table. Inaho is trying to convince Inko to let him out of it. Even though it was his own fault in the first place. 

“And I didn’t want to see what I did in that closet!”

Slaine burns. 

“We can play another game.”

And Slaine remembers just how smart Inaho is. Inko loves games. Inko would never turn down the chance to play a game, especially with Inaho actually willing to play. Inko knows what Inaho is doing. But she can’t resist. “Fine. If you win the next game, you only have to do the dishes for five days instead of a week.”

“Two days.”

“Three.” 

“Fine.”

“But we aren’t playing cards. Or chess. Or anything else you suggest. You have to win fair and square.”

“I always win fairly.”

“It’s not really fair if no one else has a chance…” Slaine mutters, and Inaho gives him a betrayed look. 

“Right!” Inko says. “So we’ll play Pictionary!”

-

Since Slaine and Inaho are the ones who are trying to get out of doing the dishes, they are put on a team together. Slaine wonders if Inko really knows what she’s doing… The game is simply trying to get your partner to guess a word before the other teams by drawing it. And he and Inaho have proven that they work well together. It seems unfair. 

But Inko seems unconcerned as she pairs herself with Calm, and Nina with Princess Asseylum. 

“Ok! Is everyone ready?!” Inko asks, everyone nods. 

Inko picks a card and shows it to Inaho, who nods, and passes it to Asseylum.

They all pick up their pencils.

Inaho looks so determined. He must really hate dishes. 

Eddelrittuo flips the timer. “Go!”

Inko and Asseylum begin scribbling furiously. Inaho slowly, meticulously, begins to draw. 

“Hurry up, Orange!”

“I’m working on it, Bat.”

“No talking!” Inko snaps. 

Slaine shuts his mouth and concentrates on Inaho’s drawing. 

It looks like a lump…

“A rock…?”

“No.” Inaho begins to add arrows and lines pointing everywhere. It’s looking like a very complex lump…

What kind of word is this?!

The others are beginning to shout out words. 

“Shower!”  
“Dancing!”  
“Flower!”  
“Rain!”

Slaine looks at Inaho’s picture in confusion. It appears Inaho is done, he is looking at Slaine expectantly. 

“Uh… a slide…?” He wishes he could see the others’ drawings…

“Storm!” Calm yells, and Inko gets excited at that. 

Storm? Is Inaho even drawing the same thing as the others? 

“Uh… lightning…?” Slaine asks, trying to play off Calm’s answer.

“Thunderstorm!” 

“Got it!” Inko yells triumphantly. 

“Thunderstorm?! How is that a thunderstorm, Orange?!”

“It is the diagram of how a thunderstorm forms and acts,” he says, as if it should be obvious. “This is the warm air rising,” –he points to a cluster of arrows- “And this is-”

“Ugh! Can we switch partners?!” 

“Nope!” Inko says gleefully, and she rolls the dice and moves her piece five spaces. 

“I really like your picture, Seylum!” Nina says. Everybody crowds around to look. 

“I wish I could go play in the rain!” Asseylum says.

There is a cloud raining water on a smiling stick figure who is obviously supposed to be Asseylum. Flowers are blooming around her in the picture. It’s not very obvious that it would be a thunderstorm, but at least it’s better than Inaho’s ridiculous diagram. 

“Yes, it is very good,” Eddelrittuo says proudly. 

Slaine sighs and looks at the card he is passed. 

The word is farm. 

That should be easy enough, as long as Inaho can guess it. 

“Go!”

Slaine starts drawing. He begins with a cow. 

“A circle.” 

“I haven’t even started yet!” He yells at Inaho. 

“No talking!” Inko says. 

Slaine adds the rest of the features to the cow, the head. Inaho is silent. He adds spots to the cow’s body, hoping that Inaho will get it.

“Mold.”

Slaine groans and moves on to drawing a sheep.

“A rock.”

“No!”

He finishes up his sheep and starts on a chicken. Inaho says nothing. By now the others are beginning to guess. He draws a barn behind the animals. 

Inaho stares at him in silence. Everyone else is shouting out words. 

“Guess!”

“Your picture doesn’t many any sense.”

“Yes it does!” Slaine frantically adds more spots to the cow, hoping Inaho will get it now.

“Oh! A farm!” Princess Asseylum says. 

Slaine groans again, Nina cheers. 

“That isn’t a farm, Bat.”

“It is! Just because you don’t understand-”

“It doesn’t make any sense,” Inaho says again. 

This time everyone crowds to look at Slaine’s picture. Good. Now they can see it’s not Slaine’s fault; Inaho is just the worst partner.

“What is that?” Nina asks.

“What?” Slaine asks in disbelief. 

“It looks like a muffin or something…?” Inko says. 

“It’s a sheep! And that’s a cow! And that a chicken and a barn!” Slaine says. How can they not get it?

Calm tilts his head. “Uh I guess I can kinda see it…”

“Why is the chicken as big as the cow?” Nina asks. 

“Because…! Ugh! Nevermind!” Slaine glares at Inaho. Somehow this is his fault. 

“I think it’s nice, Slaine,” Princess Asseylum says kindly. 

“…Thank you, your highness…”

It goes on like this for a while, Inaho and Slaine failing miserably as the others advance. 

It’s Slaine’s turn to draw again. He sighs in relief as he looks at the card. The word is cookie. Even he can’t mess this up. 

“Go!”

Slaine draws the cookie. 

“Circle.”

“Stop guessing circle! It’s never going to be circle!”

Slaine adds some chocolate chips and waits. 

“Atom.”

“What?!”

“Bacteria.”

“No!” Slaine adds some crumbs around the cookie. 

“Cookie!” Inko shouts. Calm and Inko high five as they move towards the end. 

Slaine and Inaho’s piece has only moved once the whole game. Inaho had drawn an arrow pointed at Slaine. “Me?” Slaine asked, and Inaho had nodded for Slaine to continue. Slaine is sure his face was very red when he mumbled out ‘Bat’. Inaho had rolled the dice and got a two. 

So, Slaine has therefore decided that this is the worst game ever. 

Inko and Calm only need to guess one more word to win the game. Slaine looks at his card, already resigned to defeat and doing the dishes. 

Egg. Of course. 

“Go!”

He draws the egg. 

“Circle.”

“Inaho!”

“Oval.”

“No!”

Slaine doesn’t know what else to do. He knows better by now than to draw a chicken. It doesn’t matter. Inaho’s not going to get it anyway. That idiot is incapable of guessing anything.

He draws a heart around the egg. 

“Ah. An egg,” Inaho says at the same time Calm shouts “Egg!”

Inko makes the executive decision that Calm was faster. Slaine doesn’t argue. 

Calm and Inko jump up and celebrate their victory. 

“That was very fun,” Asseylum says. 

“Yes,” Inko replies. “It’s always fun when Inaho and Slaine can’t beat us at something and have to do the dishes.”

-

“I can’t believe the only words you guessed right was egg,” Slaine mutters darkly, walking next to Inaho back to their rooms. “I guess that’s to be expected, though.”

“Yes, it’s expected because you can’t draw.”

“Yes I can!” Slaine has since admitted to himself that he can, in fact, not draw. But he’s not going to admit that to Inaho. 

Inaho stops and takes a piece of paper out his pocket and shows it to Slaine. It’s his picture of a farm. 

“Why do you have that?!” Slaine cries. 

“For proof.”

“No! Give it to me!”

Inaho ignores him and carefully refolds the paper and tucks it away. Slaine starts to plan on how he can steal it later and destroy it forever. 

“I also kept this one,” Inaho says, displaying Slaine’s egg with a heart.

“Of course.”

He will have to destroy that as well.

“I’ve already scanned them into my tablet and backed them up, so there is no point in destroying them.”

“What?! When did you do that?!”

“When you were cleaning up.”

“You were supposed to be helping!”

“I did. I was in charge of throwing the used paper away.”

“Well, you obviously didn’t do it right, considering you kept some!” Slaine scowls. 

Inaho smiles contentedly at Slaine. 

Slaine can’t stop the corners of his mouth from twitching upwards. “It’s your fault we lost you know,”

“It was your fault,”

Slaine’s hand bumps Inaho’s. He takes it, and they walk through the halls, holding hands. Even though they lost (and have to do the dishes), Slaine feels like he’s actually won.

-

As he and Slaine near their rooms, Slaine grows increasingly agitated. He clutches Inaho’s hand tighter.

“Don’t leave me…” Slaine mumbles. 

“I won’t.”

Not now. Not ever.

Slaine relaxes a little, and Inaho leads the way to Slaine’s room. They sit on the side of Slaine’s bed in silence. Exhaustion floods through Inaho.

_Maybe I shouldn’t have done so much today. Considering I almost died and just woke up, it wasn’t the wisest idea._

But Inaho does not regret one thing he did today. 

Inaho closes his eyes and lays back on Slaine’s bed. 

“What are you doing, Orange?”

“I’m tired, Bat.”

“You need to go back to the doctor’s office! You never should have left! You-”

“I’m staying here,” Inaho says, and pulls on Slaine’s arm. 

Slaine relents and lays down next to Inaho. They turn to face each other. 

“You can’t wear this to bed,” Slaine says, tugging at Inaho’s uniform. 

Inaho nods in agreement and sits up. He pulls his sweater off and folds it neatly. Slaine immediately grabs Inaho’s tie and begins to loosen it. 

In response, Inaho reaches for Slaine’s tie, and quickly unties it and slides it off. 

They both hesitate. Inaho remembers the last time he saw Slaine without a shirt… It didn’t end well.

But Slaine begins to unbutton his own shirt, so Inaho does the same with his, not taking his eyes off Slaine. 

When their shirts and rest of their uniforms are off and folded, in a neat pile, Slaine blushes and lays down, facing away from Inaho. “Go to sleep, Orange.”

Inaho lays next to Slaine and traces a scar on Slaine’s back. Slaine tenses up. Inaho presses his lips to the scar. 

“Inaho!” Slaine says, turning to face him. “I thought you were tired!”

Inaho looks at those wide blue eyes, and Inaho sees his future. His future is in Slaine’s eyes. Slaine is his future. He feels like he’s been here his whole life, looking into Slaine’s eyes. He feels like he’s been waiting his whole life to be here, looking into Slaine’s eyes. 

It doesn’t make any sense. He gently rests his fingers next to Slaine’s eyes. 

“I love you, Slaine.”

Slaine’s eyes widen, and he turns red as his mouth falls open. 

“Love is just chemicals in the brain, neurotransmitters firing. Actually, it may just be a social construct; it’s irrational and doesn’t provide many benefits for human survival or progression. But I love you, Slaine.”

Tears well up in Slaine’s eyes. “That was the worst confession ever,” he sniffs, and squeezes his eyes shut, tears rolls down his cheeks. 

“It was not. It was-”

“Shut up,” Slaine whispers, cupping Inaho’s face and pulling it closer to him. “I love you, Inaho. I love you so much. I’ll always love you,” he smiles at Inaho through his tears. 

Inaho feels so much inside of him. He never thought that those words would mean so much to him. He never thought he would need to hear them so much. He never thought he would need Slaine so much. 

Suddenly those words he said to Slaine aren’t enough. They aren’t enough. How is he supposed to put all he is feeling into words? ‘I love you’ was simple and understandable. He could say it to anyone, and they would understand what it means. He could say it to anyone. People say it carelessly, about anything. 

But Slaine, what Slaine is to him, it’s different. There are no easy, predefined, words for it. Inaho hardly even knows what this is himself, how is he supposed to tell Slaine?

“Slaine… I…you…” he breaks off, struggling. He makes a sound of frustration. 

Slaine laughs. Inaho is annoyed that this isn’t going the way he wants it to. 

“If there are parallel universes, I love you in all of them,” Inaho says. It’s the best way he can find to express these abstract feelings. 

“If there are parallel universes, I doubt that is true,” Slaine chuckles. 

“No.”

“I’m sure there’s one where we never met. Or one where we are enemies.”

“No. It would be wrong. I would be wrong.” How is he supposed to explain it? 

“Inaho…”

He desperately tries to explain. “You are part of me, Slaine. I couldn’t fight you. I couldn’t hurt you. I-”

Slaine kisses him. Slaine’s tears are flowing again. “I understand, Inaho. I could never hurt you, either.”

Inaho looks at Slaine and he’s looking at the other half of himself. 

Slaine clutches Inaho tight, and buries his face in Inaho’s neck. “I can’t lose you, Inaho.”

“You won’t.”

“You don’t know that! Especially when you do stupid stuff, like die!” Slaine says angrily. 

Inaho wraps his arms around Slaine. “I will always protect you, Slaine. And it wasn’t stupid.”

Inaho feels Slaine’s mouth curve against his neck. “You’re always stupid, Orange. And I’ll just have to keep saving you, then.”

“I don’t need you to save me, Bat.”

Slaine snorts and pulls back to look at Inaho, watery eyes shining with laughter. “History says otherwise.”

“Just because-”

“Shut up, Orange,” Slaine laughs and kisses his nose. 

Inaho shuts his mouth and shuts his eyes, content to just lay here holding Slaine. 

He feels Slaine’s fingers run down the side of his face. They come back to touch his cheek and carefully move over his closed eyelid. 

“Slaine…” he says without opening his eyes, as Slaine’s fingers gently brush down his nose and land on his lips. 

Inaho opens his eyes and is sure that his pupils are as dilated as Slaine’s are. 

“What are you doing?” Inaho asks, and Slaine’s thumb traces his bottom lip. “You’re being weird,” He mumbles.

Slaine flushes, but does not remove his thumb. “I am not. I-I just don’t want to forget your face,” Slaine mutters. 

Inaho takes Slaine’s thumb into his mouth and kisses it gently. Then he kisses the next finger, and the next. The instant Inaho releases Slaine’s last finger, Slaine’s lips are on his. 

“Inaho…” Slaine groans into his mouth. 

Inaho inhales sharply as Slaine moves his mouth to his neck and begins placing wet, open mouthed kisses down it. 

Inaho places his hands on Slaine’s bare back, amazed at the feel of it beneath his hands, at the fact that he is touching it. He moves slides his hands down Slaine’s sides and rests his hands on Slaine’s hips. 

Slaine sucks hard at his neck. 

“Hey,” Inaho mumbles. 

“Don’t dish out what you can’t take, Orange,” 

Inaho circles his fingers on Slaine’s hipbone. 

Slaine bites down hard on Inaho’s neck. 

Inaho groans softly, Slaine lifts his head and looks at him, eyes wide, and kisses him feverishly. 

And Inaho knows he has everything he ever needs next to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sorry for the late update! I'm moving, so for the next two weeks the chapters might be a little late, but I will still try to get one out every week!
> 
> -I'm so glad you all seemed to like the last chapter! I hope you like this one too! I felt like a love confession was imminent from the moment they kissed. 
> 
> -For some reason I really like having everyone play games. I think Inko embodies me. So if you guys have any ideas or suggestions for games or activities you'd like to see them do, let me know! I love writing that stuff, when I can fit it in :)
> 
> -I'm happy I got to write a nice fluffy chapter for once! I tried to show how their relationship isn't really going to change just because they kissed now. They're still going to act and treat each other basically the same way :)
> 
> -Thanks so much for reading and commenting! This is turning out to be so much more longer and more fun than I thought it would be. Your comments always make me smile! I'm sorry I haven't been able to reply to them, I'm super busy and try to get a chapter out every week, but they are very very appreciated! :)))


	18. Chapter 18

Inaho wakes up and smiles. He’s wrapped around a still sleeping Slaine. 

Slaine sighs and snuggles deeper into the bed and into Inaho. 

Inaho has never felt more content. 

He closes his eyes and goes back to sleep.

-

Inaho wakes up to blue eyes. 

“Are you watching me sleep, Bat?”

Slaine smiles. “It’s only fair, Orange. Considering how many times you’ve watched me.”

Inaho hums and presses his face into Slaine’s bare chest. 

“So you admit it!” 

“You have nightmares.”

“…I didn’t last night.”

“I’m glad,” Inaho mumbles sleepily on Slaine’s chest. “You hog the blankets, you know.”

“Well maybe if your feet weren’t so cold, I wouldn’t need so many blankets!”

In response, Inaho presses his feet firmly against Slaine’s bare calf. 

“Inaho!” Slaine jerks, but does not let go of him. 

“I have poor circulation in my feet, making them get cold easily. Next time I’ll wear socks.”

Next time. Next time he sleeps in Slaine’s bed, sleeps next to Slaine. There will be a next time. Inaho has never felt this content, this happy. He places a soft kiss on Slaine’s chest, and Slaine holds him tighter.

They lay there in each other’s arms until Slaine sighs and sits up. 

Inaho pouts, missing the warmth of Slaine’s body. 

Slaine gives him a sad smile. “I feel like we’re running out of time,”

Inaho sits up. He knows that they are running out of time. This war is far from over. They’ve had a day of peace, and that’s been lucky. 

For the first time, he wishes that they could run away. That he could sleep in Slaine’s arms every night. That they could always be happy, together…

Slaine is looking at the ceiling. “I will fight for peace. So that the war can end. It has to end… Mars and Earth can work together. You can go back to school with everyone… I can… we can…” Slaine starts crying. 

He sounds like Seylum. Inaho knows Slaine knows it. But he even if it’s foolish, he can’t help but want the same thing. 

Slaine wipes away his tears and looks at Inaho. 

Then Slaine reaches behind his neck and takes of his pendant. He holds it out to Inaho. “I know you don’t believe in luck, and that this is just some stupid trinket. But I want you to take it,” he presses it firmly into Inaho’s hands. “It protected Princess Asseylum. Maybe it will protect you. Maybe it will bring you back to me.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Inaho says, but takes the pendant and puts it around his neck. It feels heavy against his chest. 

-

They decide they should probably go out and see what’s going on. They’ve completed their mission, so Princess Asseylum should be giving her speech soon. No matter how much Slaine doesn’t want to leave this room. These four walls of safety, where he can be with Inaho. 

Slaine looks over to see Inaho putting one of Slaine’s t shirts on. 

Slaine stares at him. “W-what are you doing?!” 

“I have to shower later, so it would be pointless to wear my uniform for just a few hours.”

“You can’t wear that!” 

“Why not?”

Slaine ignores the feeling he gets from seeing Inaho in a t shirt. From Inaho wearing Slaine’s clothes like it’s nothing. Ignores how good Inaho looks. 

“Because!” 

He can’t ignore the giant red mark on Inaho’s neck, easily visible in the shirt. 

“That’s not a reason, Bat.”

“Just put on your uniform! Or at least the shirt!” 

If Inaho walks out like that, everyone will see it. 

“Ah, I see,” Inaho says, touching his neck. 

Slaine blushes. He picks up Inaho’s shirt and throws it at him. “Here!”

“No.” Inaho says, heading for the door.

“What?!”

Inaho smirks at him. “You did it. It’s your fault,” he says and walks out the door. 

Slaine stares after him in horror. He quickly scrambles to throw on a shirt and runs after him “Wait! Orange!!!”

-

Inko bursts out laughing when she sees them. Inaho calm and collected, and Slaine red-faced, angry and out of breath. Matching marks on both of their necks. 

The others just stare on in shock. 

Does anything embarrass Inaho?!

Slaine decides he might as well give up any hope of not being mortified in a relationship with Inaho. At least he got it out of the way early today. 

And he can’t say it isn’t just a little pleasing to see Inaho unashamedly displaying proof of their relationship to anyone who passes them… 

They finish eating and Inaho stands up. “I have to-”

“Right!” Inko shoves dishes into his hands. “You have to wash the dishes!” 

“I’m injured,” Inaho protests. 

“No you’re not! What’s on your neck proves that you’re perfectly capable of doing the dishes!”

Slaine has to laugh at the look on Inaho’s face. And the fact that Inaho’s refusal to hide the mark backfired. But his laugh is quickly silences as Inko hands him a stack of dishes. 

“Have fun!” Inko says cheerfully, as they all leave. “But not too much fun…” She mutters, and Slaine blushes all over again. 

-

He and Inaho stand side by side, scrubbing dishes. Slaine really doesn’t mind. It’s a nice feeling, being with Inaho, doing something as normal as washing a plate. And Inaho’s grumpy face makes it even better. 

“It’s not that bad, Orange,” Slaine says, picking up a cup.

“Yes it is. The practice is outdated. There are dish washers for a reason. They are much more efficient than humans. Headquarters should really invest in one. Plus, it makes my hands dry out.”

Slaine laughs when Inaho looks despairingly at his pruney fingers. “You’re ridiculous.”

“No I’m not. I don’t like the feeling. And it makes it difficult to use my tablet.”

Slaine takes one of Inaho’s hands and runs a finger over the wrinkles forming. “Fine, Orange. I’ll wash the dishes and you can dry them. It’s just as efficient as both of us washing and then drying. And this way, your poor hands won’t get wet.”

Inaho doesn’t even hesitate to pick up a towel and begin drying. 

Slaine smiles as he washes the dishes and passes them to Inaho. 

Their shoulders press together as the work. There’s really no reason for them to be this close to each other, other than the fact that they can, and that they want to. 

Slaine doesn’t want to let Inaho out of his sight. When Inaho is touching him, he feels grounded and safe. And it reminds him that this is real…

So, Slaine happily washes the dishes, and even Inaho looks content now that his hands aren’t in the water. Everything is going perfectly, until Slaine picks up a spoon. 

He makes the mistake of putting it directly under the facet, and water sprays off of it everywhere. 

He winces as he gets a face full of water and quickly drops the spoon. 

He looks at Inaho, whose left side is slightly wet, nothing compared to Slaine’s dripping face. Inaho is examining a wet spot on his pants. 

He turns and gives Slaine a look. 

“No! Inaho!” Slaine frantically backs away from the sick and Inaho, already knowing what is going to happen. “It was an accident! We can’t just make a mess every time we are given a job!”

“You always start it.”

Slaine gets in a defensive stance, ready. 

But Inaho just shrugs and picks his towel back up and dries another plate. 

Slaine sighs in relief. Maybe they won’t have to clean up another giant mess after all. 

He wipes the water off of his face and goes back to the sink to pick to spoon back up. This time he makes sure to turn it sideways before putting it under the water.

Slaine presses his shoulder back against Inaho’s and they work without incident. Slaine finally finishes the last dish and passes it to Inaho who dries it. 

They’ve completed their job and didn’t make a mess. Slaine feels accomplished. He turns to Inaho with a smile. And gets another face full of water. 

“Orange!” 

Inaho sets down the spoon he had expertly angled and begins to walk away. “I didn’t make a mess. If you retaliate now, the mess will be your fault. Now we’re even.”

Slaine growls as Inaho’s logic. “You got a lot more on me than I did on you!” Slaine accuses, following Inaho out. 

Inaho stops and turns to Slaine. “That’s because you look good like this,” Inaho says, studying Slaine’s dripping hair and flustered face. He leans up and places a soft kiss on Slaine’s lips. Inaho’s mouth lingers on his, and Slaine’s heart beats faster. Inaho pulls him closer. 

“That’s not fair,” Slaine mumbles against Inaho’s lips, eyes closed. 

“The world isn’t fair. Therefore, we have to use the time we have wisely,” Inaho says and avidly kisses into Slaine’s mouth. 

Slaine finds that he has to agree. 

-

Inko fearfully peaks her head into the kitchen. It’s been half an hour, and she’s expecting the worst. She imagines broken dishes, food splatters, Inaho and Slaine fighting, the whole place destroyed as usual. 

But instead she finds a spotless kitchen with nicely washed and dried dishes. No sign of any incidents.

She is instantly suspicious. 

If it wasn’t for the clean dishes, she would have thought that Inaho and Slaine hadn’t been here at all. She is tempted to go find them, make sure they weren’t kidnapped or brainwashed or something. But she remembers yesterday and thinks better of it. Those idiots probably just realized that they have better ways to use their energy now, rather than making messes. 

She’ll just have to talk to them later. 

-

To Inko’s immense frustration, Slaine and Inaho are inseparable. It’s understandable, and it’d be cute, if she didn’t need to talk to them individually!

In the end, she has to drag Slaine away while Nina distracts Inaho with some technical question that she is sure Inaho can go on about forever. 

She pulls a confused and protesting Slaine all the way to her room. She closes the door and turns to him, eyes sparkling. 

Slaine looks at her, still confused. “Did you tell Nina to ask Inaho about electromagnetic fluctuations…?”

She squeals and hugs him. “Yes! So tell me what happened! And don’t say nothing! Because I’ve seen enough to know that’s not true!” 

Slaine blushes. “I don’t know… we kissed…”

“Well, I knew that! Did you kiss him?”

“We kind of kissed each other…”

“I knew it! I knew that idiot liked you too!”

“You knew…?”

Of course she did. She is a girl after all. She can see these things. It doesn’t matter that she didn’t actually know for sure… Slaine doesn’t need to know that.  


“Yes! I’m so happy for you! You guys seem the same though! But that’s expected. A few kisses wouldn’t make Inaho any less stupid! Is he a good kisser?!” Slaine’s mouth drops open. She laughs. “You don’t need to answer. I’ve seen enough to make my own judgment.”

Slaine is staring at her in horror. She can’t stop giggling. This is even more fun than following them. 

“After this war is over, you can come back to school with us! I know Calm has an extra room in his house. Or maybe you could even stay with Inaho. Though, I don’t know how Yuki would feel about that. But it will be so much fun! We can do real stuff! And you can see how much of a pain Inaho is in the classroom!” Slaine smiles, but there’s something not quite right behind it. “Of course… that’s if the war ends…”

It was easy to forget that this wasn’t all over yet. 

Slaine nods. 

“You guys will be ok! I know it! We’ll all be together and you can tell me all the gossip about you and Inaho and complain about when he’s an idiot and I will give you brilliant advice!”

Slaine looks scared at the thought. But Inko knows he will warm up to the idea eventually. 

“Oh! That reminds me!” Inko says, reaching for her pocket. “I thought you might want to have this!” She says, handing Slaine her secret detective Slaine-and-Inaho book. She looks at it in his hands, confused. Then he opens it and blanches. 

“What is this?!”

“It’s a book of your memories with Inaho! At least the one’s I observed.”

Slaine’s mouth is open again. He doesn’t look like he wants her present. Considering how many times ‘Slaine blushed’ or ‘Slaine is red’ are written in it, she kind of understands. 

“You’ll appreciate it one day!” She says knowingly.

“Why do you have this…?”

“I had to do some research on you two, to be able to help you the best,” she explains. 

“By spying on us…” 

“No. Just observing!”

“Same thing!” 

“Nope!” She smiles and Slaine hesitantly tucks the book away. 

“… Thank you…” he still sounds unsure. 

She hugs him again. “You’re welcome! Now we should go save Nina from Inaho! Don’t worry, Slaine! Everything is going to work out! You’ll see!”

-

Slaine can’t help but smile when he sees Inaho talking adamantly to Nina, showing her something on his tablet. Nina looks very lost and her eyes plead for rescue, but Inaho doesn’t seem to notice. He just keeps explaining. 

Slaine bumps shoulders with Inaho, grabbing his attention. “Hey, Orange.”

Inaho gives him a small smile. “Bat.”

“I need you to help me with something,” Slaine says. 

“I guess I’ll have to finish explaining this to you later,” Inaho says to Nina, closing a very complex picture on his tablet. 

“Uh… I think I understand! Thank you, Inaho!” She says, and gives Slaine a grateful look before running to Inko. 

“I don’t know how she can understand complex quantum physics from that,” Inaho says doubtfully. 

Slaine smiles and takes Inaho’s hand. “Come on, Orange. I need your help.”

“With what?”

Slaine hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Err…”

He can’t stop looking at Inaho, still in Slaine’s shirt, still unabashedly displaying the mark on his neck, still looking at Slaine expectantly. 

Slaine kisses Inaho. 

“Is this what you needed my help with?” Inaho asks Slaine between kisses. 

“Shut up, Orange.”

“I’m not complaining. It just seems unlikely that you interrupted me in order to kiss me in a public area, when I have seen your aversion to-”

“Just kiss me. No one’s here. And we have to use our time wisely, remember?”

“If you had kissed me sooner, we would have had more time,” Inaho says roughly as Slaine rubs a finger over his previous mark and places a soft kiss on it. 

“What?” Slaine mutters against Inaho’s neck.

Inaho runs his hands down Slaine’s back. “According to your actions, it was likely that you wanted to kiss me long before you did. If you had, we would have had much more time to do this.” Inaho replies.

Slaine raises his head to look Inaho in the eye. “What?! Well, what about you?!”

Inaho slowly presses his lips to Slaine’s. “The probability that you felt the same way as me was very low.”

“Then why was I supposed to kiss you first?!”

“Because apparently my feelings for you were obvious. You should have been able to tell.”

“What?! No they weren’t! No one can ever tell what you are feeling! You should have been able to tell mine!”

“You were not obvious.”

“Yes I was! Inko figured it out right away!”

“Yuki figured mine out.”

“That’s because she’s your sister!”

“So?”

“Ugh! We’re both idiots,” Slaine says. 

Inaho sloppily kisses his cheek. “I’m not-”

“Shut up, Orange!” Slaine says again, and kisses Inaho with everything he has.

-

Captain Magbaredge is only a little surprised when Inaho shows up unannounced in her office that afternoon.

“I don’t think Rayet should be punished,” Inaho tells her, straight to the point as always. Captain Magbaredge narrows her eyes. Why does Inaho care about Rayet? And why now of all times? Where is Slaine? And what is that on his neck?

There are too many questions. There are still questions left over from days ago. Like how did Inaho survive the poison? What really happened on moon base?  


But Inaho denies any knowledge of anything. He was unconscious after all. And she doubts Slaine will be any more help now than he was originally. He obviously didn’t want to relive that experience. The real question is why Inaho hadn’t figured it out from Slaine. Inaho wasn’t one to let something go without knowing the details. 

Those questions will likely be a mystery to her forever. But she doesn’t intend to let herself to be kept in the dark by the boy sitting in front of her about everything. 

“Why is that?”

“She is regretful for her actions. She was under immense stress and acted out. It wasn’t a pre-calculated act of murder.”

“Why are you telling me this now?”

“Because I don’t know what’s going to happen next. Princess Asseylum is about to give her speech. If the war ends, she shouldn’t be locked up forever. And if it doesn’t end, she would want to fight with us.”

It would be a lie if she said she hadn’t had these same thoughts. She didn’t need Inaho Kaizuka to tell her what is right and what is wrong. Still, she’s surprised that it seems like Inaho cares about her for more than just a chess piece. Something seems different.

“What’s on your neck?” Is it an aftereffect from the poison?

Inaho reaches up and touches the red spot absently, as if he forgot it was there. He gets a look in his eyes and opens his mouth to reply, and it suddenly hits her what it is. 

“Never mind. Don’t answer that.”

So the boys finally figured out their feelings. That would either be good, or bad. Only time would tell. But it was obviously already having an effect on Inaho, if he was taking the time to come make a case for Rayet’s life. Slaine’s compassion is getting to him. He’s found a value to life other than just living to survive.

“How does Slaine feel about you asking me this?”

“He doesn’t know.”

“He wouldn’t like it.”

“I know. But it’s the right thing to do. She doesn’t deserve this. She’s on our side.”

So he’s still willing to do something he knows Slaine won’t agree with. That’s good to know. 

“I’ll try my best, but my hands might be tied,” she tells Inaho.

“The knowledge of what she did isn’t widely known. Only a select few know what she’s actually locked up for. And most aren’t even aware that she exists. If the right people are convinced of her usefulness, she need never be exposed. She’s not going to try anything again. She can agree to fight for earth in exchange for her freedom.”

It’s a good idea. Inaho has actually thought this through, as usual. It wasn’t a half-hearted attempt to make himself feel better for doing the right thing. He legitimately wants Rayet’s freedom. 

“I’ll see what I can do. Thank you, Kaizuka Junior.”

Inaho nods and leaves her office. She notices the mark on his neck once again, and the uncharacteristic t shirt. She sighs. 

She’s glad that they could find some form of happiness in this world, but will that happiness last? Will it bring sadness to others in its wake? They aren’t normal teenagers. This isn’t going to be easy. 

But she has bigger problems than Inaho’s love life. Though, it is a pretty big issue, considering he is the best chance against the martians they have. Everything he does will affect the outcome of the war. 

But right now she needs to prepare for the princess to give her speech. This is going to be a turning point in the war, whatever happens. She hopes that she’s ready for it.

-

Inko hums happily. She had finally managed to corner Inaho alone. Poor Slaine looked so confused when Inaho finally showed back up. But realization bloomed on his face as soon as he saw Inko. He gave her a suspicious look. 

Good. He should have been suspicious. 

Her talk with Inaho went about as expected. Emotionless, yes and no answers, no real details. He seemed as detached as always, and slightly annoyed that she took him away from Slaine. She didn’t get any good information out of him. Luckily, she had Slaine for that. 

The only real emotion she saw was when she gave Inaho his gift. All annoyance disappeared. He was much more appreciative of it than Slaine was of his. ‘Thank you, Inko’ he said very seriously. 

She laughs giddily. Hopefully Inaho will make good use of what she gave him.

-

“Where are we going, Orange?” Slaine asks, he walks next to Inaho through the headquarters. Inaho glances at his tablet and confirms that they are indeed heading in the right direction.

“We’re going on a date, Bat.”

“What?!”

“Multiple resources have specified that a date is an important part of beginning a relationship.”

Slaine blushes. Inaho considers stopping to admire the look on Slaine’s face. 

“We don’t have to go on a date just because your tablet told you so,” Slaine says. 

“No. We’re going on a date because I want to. Do you not want to?”

“No!” Slaine quickly says. “I mean yes. Yes, I want to.”

“Then what’s the problem?” Inaho asks. Slaine is very confusing. 

“Nothing! I just-!” Slaine breaks off. “Where are we even going?”

“Well, I can’t take you on a typical date. The most frequent suggestions were a movie, or dinner or the beach. It’s weird… Inko made me go to all of those with her,” Inaho says thoughtfully. She must have just not realized what kind of places those were. And she somehow always ended up mad at the end. “But we obviously can’t do any of that. And there is a snowstorm outside according to my tablet. But the map says there should be a room...Here,” he says, as they arrive at the large arched door. 

It takes both of Inaho’s hands to push it open. 

He holds the door for Slaine, just like his resources told him was expected. Slaine gives him a weird look. 

“What is this place…?” Slaine asks, confused. 

“An information and resource center.”

“You’re taking me on a date to an information and resource center…?”

Inaho doesn’t see where the confusion is coming from. “Yes.”

Slaine looks unimpressed at the row of filing cabinets and old boxes piled by the entrance. Inaho grabs Slaine’s hand as they walk towards the back. Slaine smiles at him. “I don’t know what else I would have expected from you.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

Slaine smirks. “Nothing. This is just a very typical Inaho date.”

“How do you know? I’ve never been on a date before.”

“Well I’m sure they all would have been to an information and resource center… or something similar.”

They turn the corner and Slaine’s smirking face changes to surprise. Inaho wishes again that he could capture this expression. 

Inaho himself is slightly surprised. He didn’t expect the place to be so big. 

“This is… a library…” Slaine says. 

“Yes,” Inaho says, confused by Slaine’s confusion. 

“Why didn’t you say that in the first place?!”

“I did.”

“You said information and resource center!”

“It’s the same thing.”

“It sounds completely different!” Slaine says, but smiles as he looks around. 

“I thought you would like to see some earth books,” Inaho says. 

“I grew up on earth, you know. It’s not like I’ve never seen a book before,” Slaine says, but his eyes begin to wonder curiously over all the books on the rows upon rows of shelves. 

They walk hand in hand up to the shelves and look at the signs. 

And they both pull in different directions. 

They stop and look at each other. 

“Where are you going, Orange?” Slaine asks. 

“To the worthwhile books,” Inaho tells Slaine. 

Slaine looks at the sign. “You mean the instruction manuals and encyclopedias.”

“Yes. They have practical value, while fiction books contain no information that couldn’t be easier found in other books.”

“That’s not true! You can’t learn about experiences, feel emotions, get a different perspective, or see a new world in instruction manuals!”

Inaho doesn’t agree with Slaine. Non-fiction will always be more useful. But he drags Slaine towards the fiction section anyway, since that is what Slaine obviously wants. And Inaho wants what Slaine wants. 

Slaine happily follows him. 

“We can eat dinner after,” Inaho tells him. 

“Library and dinner. What a good first date, Inaho Kaizuka,” Slaine says, smiling. Inaho loves that smile. 

“It seemed optimal, considering the resources we have.”

“It’s great, Orange,” Slaine says, reaching for a book. Slaine lets go of Inaho’s hand and opens the cover. He flips through it, becoming absorbed.  
Inaho half-heartedly reaches for a book of his own. He stares absently at the cover. He doubts there is anything of value in this book. 

He puts it back on the shelf and moves next to Slaine, who has pulled a pile of books of the shelf by now. Inaho looks at them and sees that Slaine doesn’t stick to just one genre. He has many different types of books in the pile. Inaho wants to know what made Slaine pick these ones... “What is it?” he asks about the book Slaine is currently looking at. 

Slaine smirks at him. “I thought these books were pointless.”

“They likely are. But for some reason, people enjoy them.”

“Yes, normal people do,” Slaine sits down and pulls Inaho down with him. “It’s a book about revenge.”

“What’s the point?”

“To enjoy! It’s a classic! It has literary value.”

“I still think the book on earth’s flora and fauna is better.”

Slaine smiles. “Fine, Orange. You can go look at your books.”

“No. I want to stay here.”

Slaine looks at him in surprise. 

“Will you read it out loud?”

Slaine pauses. “If you want me to…”

“I do.”

So Slaine hesitantly begins to read. Inaho leans his head against Slaine’s shoulder. He doesn’t quite care about the book, but he cares about the gentle way Slaine’s voice carries. He cares about the way Slaine is obviously captivated by the book. He cares about the way Slaine blushes slightly as he reads about the woman’s love for a man. 

Even though his interests are different than Slaine’s, even though Inaho doesn’t see the point in fiction stories, he enjoys listening to Slaine. 

So Slaine keeps reading and Inaho keeps listening about the man driven into darkness for vengeance for his lost love. 

And then the woman dies. 

Slaine stops reading. He looks slightly upset. “We’ve been reading for hours!” Slaine says, and Inaho realizes it’s true. They got so caught up in the story that they let time slip away. 

Slaine closes the half-finished book and stands up, offering Inaho a hand. 

“Why do you read it if it makes you upset?” Inaho asks. 

“Because it’s interesting! And books that make you feel something proves that it’s good writing.”

“But it made you sad.”

“That’s the point. Most people actually feel emotions,” Slaine teases, nudging Inaho. 

“But wouldn’t it be better to read facts about the world?”

Slaine smiles. “Maybe for you, Orange. But I like stories.”

Inaho smiles back as they walk through the book shelves. Inaho pulls a random book out and looks at the cover. It depicts a bare chested man passionately kissing a woman. Interesting. “Maybe fiction could have its uses…” Inaho mutters, opening the book.

Slaine looks over at the romance novel Inaho has found and reddens. “Orange! We can go look at your factual books now.” Slaine suggests hastily. 

Inaho smirks and puts the book back. Maybe he would come back for it later. “No, Seylum’s speech should be starting soon. We should get back.”

“I read for too long… now we don’t have time for anything else…I’m sorry,” Slaine says, dejectedly. 

“Don’t be sorry. I enjoyed your reading.”

Slaine looks at Inaho suspiciously. “Really?”

“Really. The story wasn’t terrible. Though, if she loved him so much, then why would she marry the other guy? It doesn’t make sense…”

“Because she felt like she had to,” Slaine smiles and presses a soft kiss to Inaho’s lips. “Thanks for the date, Inaho.”

Inaho feels happiness well up in his chest. He had his first date with Slaine. He enjoyed it. Maybe next time they can go to a training seminar or a scientist’s lecture. 

Those would be practical and useful dates.

He looks at Slaine’s cheerful face. Or they could go to the beach or the movies. Slaine will probably want to come back here, too. To finish the book. And to read the other ones he picked out. And Inaho honestly wouldn’t mind listening to Slaine read again. Yes, they’ll have to come back here.

-

“My name is Asseylum Vers Allusia, first princess of Vers and granddaughter of Emperor Rayregalia Vers Rayvers.”

Slaine nestles against Inaho as they both watch Princess Asseylum’s speech on Inaho’s tablet. She looks as beautiful as always, and very composed and determined. He and Inaho did their job. They completed their mission. If this gets to Vers, it just might work. 

“I speak now to the people of Vers. I ask you to cease this meaningless war immediately. I am alive and unharmed. The people of Earth were not responsible for my attempted assassination. It was the Orbital Knights, who only desired a pretext under which to invade.”

Slaine remembers Count Saazbuam’s story, his father’s story. This war isn’t about Princess Asseylum. It’s about revenge, it’s about a desire for Earth. His desire for the war to end allowed him to get swept up in Princess Asseylum’s words. The same thing is probably happening to everyone. Everyone wants this war to end. 

“The people of Earth have committed no wrong doing. Please cease the fighting without delay. And make peace with earth.”

Slaine doesn’t want to think about it, but he can’t help wonder what happens if this really does end the war. Vers would remain the same. It would be under a tyrannical rule, with only the powerful treated right and given access to aldnoah. 

It’s not fair, it’s not right. If the war ends now, nothing changes. If the war continues, people die. What is the right path?

“I beg of you, please put a stop to this tragedy.”

The speech ends. Slaine’s glad he doesn’t have a say in what happens. He doesn’t know what he would do. Now it’s in the hands of fate (if he believes in that. He’s still not sure). He watches Inaho fiddle with the tablet.

He sighs, suddenly very tired. He doesn’t want to talk or think about the speech, about the war. Inaho puts the tablet aside and wraps his arms around Slaine. Slaine lays his head on Inaho’s warm chest. He can see the chain from his pendant peeking out from under Inaho’s (Slaine’s) shirt. He’s glad Inaho is wearing it. It looks right on Inaho. 

“I’m sorry that we missed dinner,” Slaine mumbles to Inaho, feeling guilty. 

“It’s fine. We can eat later tonight. It’s still early,” Inaho says. Slaine nods against Inaho’s chest. He doesn’t want to move, and it doesn’t seem like Inaho does either. They can lay here for a while, and eat later. 

“You better have worn socks this time, Orange. Or you have to go to your own bed.”

It’s a blatant lie. There is no way Slaine is letting Inaho leave him. 

“I did, Bat.”

Slaine moves his legs to tangle with Inaho’s. 

Slaine sighs contentedly. “Tell me a story.”

“What?”

“A story is an account of an event that happened, real or imaginary, that-”

“I know what a story is, Bat.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“I don’t know what kind of story you want.”

“Anything.”

Inaho pauses as he considers. “Well, in 1902 there was a-”

“I don’t want a history lesson, Orange! I want a story about you!”

Inaho huffs. “I was late for the bus once.”

Slaine waits for Inaho to continue. And when he doesn’t, he nudges Inaho with his foot. 

“I had to run to catch the second bus.”

“You’re the worst story teller ever.”

“I calculated it, and at the average human’s running speed of about 8 miles per hour, and the distance from the bus from my house, I can be late by 15 minutes and still catch the second bus to school. It was useful information to have.”

“Why did you miss the bus in the first place?”

“…”

Inaho’s silence makes Slaine even more curious. Slaine nudges Inaho again. 

“I was making breakfast. I ran out of time.”

Slaine smiles into Inaho’s chest. “I’m sure that must have been a conflict for you, Orange. Eat your eggs or make it to school on time. Which did you choose?”

“Both. I brought my eggs with me.”

Now Slaine laughs. He can imagine a younger Inaho frantically packing his eggs in a zip lock bag and running to catch the bus. Arriving at school with messed up hair and uniform, clutching his eggs. “You’re ridiculous, Orange.”

Inaho hums and strokes Slaine’s hair. Slaine closes his eyes and listens to the sound of Inaho’s heartbeat thumping against his face. 

“Yuki missed the bus on the day this all started. Given her average running speed is more around 5 miles per hour, and the fact that the first bus hadn’t yet left, she had about…”

Slaine doesn’t mean to doze off in the middle of Inaho’s story, but Inaho’s voice is so comforting, and his chest is so warm, and the hand in his hair is so soothing. Slaine falls asleep smiling to Inaho’s words, thinking that he’ll just make Inaho retell him the story later when they eat dinner together.

-

Slaine jerks awake. An alarm is going off. 

He looks to Inaho in panic. Inaho is already awake (was never asleep?) Inaho also doesn’t look surprised. He just grips Slaine a little tighter. 

They’re attacking. Martians are attacking. Princess Asseylum’s speech didn’t work. It probably never was going to work. But Slaine didn’t expect them to attack the UFE headquarters so fast, so directly. 

He hears the wailing alarm, the announcement to abandon surface installments and head further underground. 

But he knows he and Inaho aren’t going to do that. They aren’t refugees. They are soldiers. They are going to fight. 

“I love you, Slaine,” Inaho says, still holding him. It sounds like a goodbye. 

Slaine clutches Inaho. No, this isn’t the end. This isn’t the last time he’s going to be in Inaho’s arms. This isn’t going to be the last time he hears one of Inaho’s stories, today wasn’t going to be their last date. They only had two days. It wasn’t enough. 

Forever wouldn’t be enough. 

But two days is all they had. 

It can’t be all they have. 

“I love you, Inaho,” Slaine says, but it’s not a goodbye, it’s a promise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -I hope you liked this chapter! I'm glad I was able to get another chapter of mostly fluff in before stuff happens. 
> 
> -The book Slaine was reading is Wuthering Heights. It's one of my favorites. And I won't say it's not relevant...
> 
> -You guys are great as always! :) Thanks for sticking with me for so long! There's a lot more to come! Hopefully there will be another chapter early next week!


	19. Chapter 19

Slaine and Inaho run past refugees fleeing the opposite way. Slaine sees crying children, and terrified mothers. Fathers trying to be strong for their family. Slaine resolves to be strong for the brown head moving in front of him.

The constant alarm has become background noise for him by now. A tremor shakes the whole base. 

They’re being fired at…

They keep running until they reach the Deucalion, and find Captain Magbaredge standing outside. 

Nina, Calm and Inko run up behind them. 

“What are you guys doing here?!” Slaine demands. They should be with the rest of the refugees. They don’t have to fight. 

“Like we would let you guys do this alone,” Inko says. Nina nods in agreement. There’s no time to argue. There’s no arguing with Inko anyway, Slaine has learned that. 

“What’s the situation?” Inaho asks calmly. 

“A landing castle has landed 20km from here. Warheads have descended into the base,” Captain Magbaredge tells them as another vibration goes through the base. Slaine hears something explode in the distance. He hopes everyone has evacuated already. She pauses to listen to her headset. “Vibrations show that enemy mechs are on the descent. All Kataphrakt platoons have launched. So if you’re going to help, get aboard and get dressed!” She yells.

-

Rayet listens carefully. She’s already felt multiple explosions. Something is happening. They are being attacked. 

Is she going to die here? No one is going to waste time to get the prisoner out of her cell in the midst of a battle. She is going to die in these walls. 

Inaho never even came back to see her. Did he make it back from Moon Base? Did Slaine die? Is their mission why they are being attacked? Is everyone already dead?

It doesn’t matter, she’s going to die. Still, she would have liked these questions answered. She would have liked to see everybody again. She would have liked to apologize to the princess. 

She would have liked to kill some more martians. 

The walls behind her explodes. 

She gasps and covers her head. Here’s where she dies. 

Rubble flies past her. She feels it scrap her arms and legs. Dust fills the air, she can’t see anything. 

She waits to be shot, or for part of the wall to crush her, or for an explosion to destroy her. 

But nothing happens. 

She uncovers her head as the dust clears. She’s alive. 

There is a kataphrakt laying half in her cell. It is what destroyed the wall. It isn’t moving. 

She’s alive. She’s free. She can run now, if she wants. She can take the kataphrakt and escape. 

She hears another explosion in the distance, and feet running past her cell. “The target is Princess Asseylum. Kill her on sight,” a voice says. 

“Yes, Sir!” Voices chorus back. 

Anger floods through her. The martians are going to kill one of their own. Betray one of their own. Again. Just like they did with her father. They were going to kill the princess, just like they did her father. 

And Princess Asseylum is innocent. More innocent than her father war. Rayet knows now that she just shifted all the blame to Asseylum because it was her only option. Princess Asseylum wasn’t at fault. It wasn’t her fault that Rayet’s father is dead. The same people who killed her father are now trying to kill her. The princess is a victim as well. One that is just trying to help. One that begged for Rayet’s forgiveness, when it should have been the other way around. One that didn’t want anyone else to die. 

And her own people were going to kill her.

Martians could not be trusted. They were all the enemy, this was just further proof. 

So, she could escape. Or she could kill some martians.

-

Princess Asseylum looks around in confusion at the alarms sounding. And then a huge impact makes the room tilt. The world explodes around her and Eddelrittuo. 

The room she had recently given her speech in is completely destroyed. 

Powder flies through the air, stinging her eyes. She sees her guard crushed under a huge boulder. Blood pooling beneath him. 

He was kind. He had a family. He died because of her. 

“Your highness, we must vacate the danger zone at once!” Eddelrittuo says. 

She doesn’t move. “I told them the assassination was a lie. Why are they still attacking?”

“Your highness…”

“Was war their goal all along? Was the assassination just an excuse?” She asks quietly. “My life was irrelevant from the beginning,” Her voice sounds dead in her own ears. People died for her, and it didn’t even matter. 

“Please don’t say that! You’re the beloved princess of Vers-”

“Then why are we under attack here?!” she yells. Eddelrittuo gasps at the outburst. 

“I’m sorry.”

“Please don’t be...”

She looks at the once beautiful, now destroyed room around her. She doesn’t look at the dead man. “Is there no one who will put an end to the Orbital Knight’s madness? Is there nothing I can do?”

-

“Ammo resupply is 70% complete.”

Slaine watches Inaho put his headset on. Inaho looks good in his uniform. If they weren’t about to go die, Slaine could appreciate it all day. Slaine’s chest hurts. He loves Inaho so much. 

They head to their kataphrakts. 

“So they’re launching a frontal attack against United Earth HQ.” Captain Magbaredge says over the communication channel. “How do they plan to negotiate if they wipe out the government?”

“They never intended to negotiate,” A man’s voice says. “This is a brute force invasion, designed to subjugate and conquer. When they’re done, nobody will be left to denounce them or invoke international law. This is the war wars have been fought since the dawn of man. Pure and savage.”

Slaine doesn’t know who the man is. But he knows he is right. There was never going to be negotiating. Vers wants Earth, and they don’t want to share. It’s win or be killed. 

Slaine looks at the Tharsis. He’s going to have to control it perfectly. There’s no room for hesitation. Not when he needs to protect Inaho. 

Count Cruhteo is dead. He knows that now. He feels relieved at the thought. Even though Count Cruhteo was loyal to Princess Asseylum, Slaine still wanted him dead.

Count Cruhteo was happily using Princess Asseylums’ death for his own goals. 

Compared to Count Saazbuam, he now seems foolish and weak. Cruhteo had no goal other than his own selfish desire for earth. Cruhteo didn’t deserve the Tharsis. Slaine would use it for much better reasons. 

Inaho is looking at his orange trainer. Inaho’s hair is slightly messy from just being in bed. Slaine can almost pretend that this is just another training session. That there is no real danger. That afterwards Inaho will kiss him and Slaine will mess his hair up even more.

He wants the life that was almost within his grasp. He wants to go to school with everyone. He wants to actually see earth. He wants to see it with Inaho. He wants to laugh and play games and get in stupid fights with Inaho. 

Let’s leave. Let’s hide with the refugees. Let’s run away. Let’s be safe. He wants to tell Inaho. He wants it so bad. But that was never going to be his future. It was never his fate.

“Why do you use that kataphrakt, Orange?” Slaine asks instead. “And don’t say because you’re used to it.”

Inaho looks seriously at Slaine. “It’s true that having a better model wouldn’t have helped me in any battles so far. But it also brought you to me. You knew to find me because I was in this orange kataphrakt. I don’t know if I believe in luck,” Inaho puts his hand on his chest, where Slaine knows his pendant lies. “But if there is luck, or chance, or anything. I want to have all I can. I want you to always be able to find me.”

Slaine snorts despite himself. “I would find you even without that ridiculous kataphrakt, Orange. I just have to look for the one doing the most crazy, dangerous thing.”

Inaho smiles at him and climbs into his orange trainer. 

Slaine keeps that imagine in his mind as his heart fills with worry and dread.

He climbs into his own Tharsis and steels himself for what is about to happen. 

“Can you patch me through to the princess?” Captain Magbaredge asks an officer in the bridge.

“Sorry, ma’am. I am trying to contact the commander of her security detail, but…”

Slaine’s dread increases. He thought Princess Asseylum would be safe… she had protection, she would be given top priority… but what if…

Inaho opens a private communication channel. “It’s going to be fine, Slaine.”

Slaine knows Inaho can’t promise that. Can’t promise that Princess Asseylum is still alive. Can’t promise anything. Nonetheless, he is comforted. Inaho is on his side. They will rescue Princess Asseylum. Slaine will fight for Inaho. 

“All kats stand by,” Yuki says over the channel. “Be ready to move out at any time.”

“Warrant Officer Kaizuka, is the Deucalion sortieing?” Inko asks.

“Hard to say. We might end up having to defend the base down here.” Yuki says, and then she answers another call. “Yes. This is Mustang Leader,” she pauses. “Call for you, Nao.”

“Mustang 22,” Inaho says, accepting the call. 

“Let me help,” Princess Asseylum’s voice comes through the channel. Slaine gasps in relief. 

“Seylum…” 

“All Vers armaments are powered by aldnoah drives. That includes landing castles. If it’s aldnoah drive is shut down, it will cease to function.” She says. She sounds perfectly fine. 

“How can it be shut down?” Inaho asks. 

“If there is any interruption in the vital signs of the one who activated the drive, it will power down automatically.”

“Like when you went into cardiac arrest and the Deucalion crashed.”

“Exactly,” Princess Asseylum replies. “Additionally, those of the emperor’s bloodline are able to force it to shut down.”

“In other words, you are saying you can do it.”

“Yes.”

“Very well. I’ll escort you to the landing castle,” Inaho says.

Slaine’s heart feels heavy. He doesn’t know what to say. 

“Hold on, Nao!” Yuki yells. “Why are you always like this?!”

“Like what?” Inaho sounds genuinely confused. 

“You know what I mean! How can you say something so crazy with a straight face?!”

In any other situation, Slaine might have smiled at that. 

“Now that we know there will be no negotiations, she is no longer any use to us politically. But if she can confer a tactical advantage, we should seize that opportunity. If we lose, she dies anyway. It’s the logical choice.”

It’s true. As much as Slaine can’t stand the thought of Princess Asseylum going into the heart of the danger, it’s all true. Inaho is right. 

“Logic is all it has going for it! Do you understand how many could die?!” Yuki asks.

“No more than if we sit here defending.”

“How does that justify it?!”

“We’re at war.”

“My point exactly!” Yuki yells, and Slaine hears her bang her fist against something. 

“Sorry, Yuki. But I think we need to go all in on whatever method offers the best chance of success. That’s all.”

“I agree with his assessment,” Princess Asseylum says. 

There is a heavy silence. “All right, your highness,” Yuki finally says. “I’ll talk to the captain.”

“Thank you,” Princess Asseylum says. 

Yuki disconnects her microphone to inform the captain of the change in plans. 

“I’m sorry, Slaine,” Inaho says over their link. 

Slaine can’t say anything. It’s not ok. It’s not alright that the two people he cares most about in the world are going to be in danger. It’s not ok that Inaho is using Princess Asseylum instead of trying to protect her. It’s not alright that this is the only way, that Inaho is doing the only thing he can do. Nothing is ok. 

“Be safe, Slaine. Hold back, don’t do anything reckless.”

Slaine laughs without humor. “You of all people can’t say that! You never hold back when your friends tell you to! I’m not going to let you do your crazy plans alone!”

“I can’t lose you.”

“I won’t let you die to protect me.”

“Then stay back.”

“No! Then you’ll die anyway.”

“I won’t.”

Slaine sighs. “You’re an idiot, Orange.”

_We’re both idiots. For falling in love._

-

Princess Asseylum walks determinedly down the hallway with Eddelrittuo. She will not be afraid. She will do this to save everyone. 

“And now the princess of the Vers Empire will turn on her own people.” she mutters. 

“This war is not the will of all Vers! It is a plot woven by traitors!” Eddelrittuo says, trying to comfort her. It doesn’t matter. People will die anyway. She is going to cause the death of even more people. Of her own people. Will she ever be able to actually save anyone? Will she ever get to save mars and earth?

“No. The responsibility is mine alone. I am to blame.” People will die, unless she can end this war. She might not have been able to stop it with words, but she isn’t powerless, not yet. She will do what she can. She will save earth, she will end this pointless war. “Let’s hurry.”

-

“Aldnoah drive output stable. Ready to launch at any time!”

Slaine listens to the team on the bridge communicate.

“And Princess Asseylum?”

“Currently on level four. She should arrive shortly.” 

An explosion rattles the ship.

“Port cannon number one hit!”

“Enemy infantry. Return fire. Any kats ready?” Captain Magbaregde asks. 

“They’re all secured in their racks!” Calm answers. 

“No matter. Launch them!”

“It’ll take some time!” Calm says, frustrated. 

Slaine is also frustrated. He’s sitting here, not able to do anything. 

“Enemy infantry on starboard stabilizer!”

“Turn the ship. Spin it in place.” Captain Magbaredge says. “Don’t let the enemy on board.”

Slaine feels the ship begin to rotate. More explosions. 

“Here comes the princess!”

“Open the hatch. Let’s pick her up.”

Slaine growls. Princess Asseylum is out there, surrounded by enemies. He can feel the ship rattling as shots and explosions bounce off of it. He can only imagine what Princess Asseylum is facing out there. How can she handle it alone? And he can’t do anything. He’s useless. All he can do is listen to the conversation. He wishes he could be out there, escorting the princess to the relative safety of the ship. 

-

“You alive?” Rayet asks, tapping into the princess’s communication link. She’s in the kataphrakt that freed her from her cell. She made her decision. She would assist earth in this battle. She wouldn’t let the martians win, wouldn’t let them betray another person. “Don’t slow down. I’ll cover you.”

Right now, Princess Asseylum is fighting for earth. She is fighting against the martians. And while all martians are the enemy, Princess Asseylum isn’t her enemy right now. 

She knows protecting her now is too little too late. It doesn’t erase the sin of trying to kill her. But it’s all she can do right now. 

“Rayet!” Princess Asseylum exclaims happily. How can she be so cheerful in this situation? How can she be so thrilled to see Rayet, when Rayet tried to kill her?

She doesn’t understand the princess at all. 

Rayet runs next to the armored car. The martian maid is driving… the sight is almost comical. 

She sprays her bullets, forcing the martian enemies to hide for cover. 

The car zooms away, closer to the Deucalion. 

She smiles. It’s a genuine smile at the fact that the princess is going to make it to safety. Maybe the princess really can end this war… 

She surprises herself that she really hopes princess Asseylum lives and helps.

But that won’t bring back her father. All martians are the enemy.

Rayet turns and shoots down some soldiers. 

She sees the princess get on the ship, and the hatch close. The main stays behind, still driving the car. 

She runs after the car. She may have no particialy fondness or any debts to repay to the main, but she isn’t going to let an eleven year old die when she can stop it.  
They turn a corner and she gaps. A huge martian kataphrakt is waiting for them. 

“Reverse,” She tells Eddelrittuo. “Head back to the dock. I’ll buy you some time.”

-

“Her highness is on board!”

Slaine takes that in happily. It doesn’t mean she is any safer. It fact, she might be in more danger now. But at least Slaine can do his best to protect her now.

“Deucalion, lift off! Control, please open the gate! Control, this is Deucalion! Do you copy?” Captain Magbarege asks frantically. There is no answer, and Slaine knows control is all dead.

“Ready missiles in tubes one through four. Target the main gate.”

“Launch tubes opened. On your command.”

“Fire.”

The Deucalion lifts off and begins its ascent. 

Slaine puts on his breathing mask. He knows Inaho has done the same, because his words are slightly muffled. 

“Allow me to explain the plan.”

Of course Inaho has a plan. Slaine already knows it’s going to be dangerous.

“The Deucalion will evade the landing castles attacks and temporarily climb into the stratosphere. The kataphrakts will then perform a combat jump from above.”

“That’s crazy! We’ll be sitting ducks in free fall!” Yuki says. “The anti-air turrets will rip us to shreds!”

“That’s why we’ll drop unmanned decoys first,” Inaho says. “The main assault force will use those as cover, aiming to land directly on the landing castle.”

It’s still crazy. It’s still dangerous. But it’s the best plan they have. 

Slaine listens as they get Princess Asseylum dressed and put in a kataphrakt with a soldier. Slaine half wants to demand that he be the one to carry her down. But the other half wants to stay with Inaho, and clear the way for her. 

“Altitude now exceeding 20,000 meters! Turn over!” Nina says.

“Drop the scarecrows!”

“There’s no telling if the decoys will actually work!” Yuki says. “And who knows what the enemy’s firepower is like!”

“So we know just as much as we did in the past,” Inaho says. 

“But-!”

“Those of the assault team who successfully land will destroy the anti-air turrets. Once their countermeasures are taken care of, we can send for Princess Asseylum. I request to be in the first wave.”

“Nao!”

“Inaho!” Slaine says over their private communication. 

Inaho ignores him. “I probably have the most experience in fighting against martian armaments.”

“I also request to be in the first wave,” Slaine says. 

“Slaine.”

“You can’t stop me, Orange. I have to make sure you don’t do anything stupid.”

The decoys have already dropped. There’s no time for Inaho to argue. There’s no time for Slaine to argue. He’ll just have to do what he can. 

“Decoy kataphrakts hit! Releasing chaff and flares!”

“Assault team, go!”

“Mustang leader to all units. Not only are our laser comms fuzzy thanks to the blizzard, the closer we get, the stronger the jamming will become. Don’t wait for orders while in free fall. Use your own judgement,” Yuki tells them.

Now, not only will he might not be able to communicate with Inaho, but Inaho was just given permission to do whatever he wants to. Slaine’s job just became harder.

“Mustang 11, roger,” Inko says. 

“Mustang 22, roger,” Inaho says. 

“Mustang 33, roger,” Slaine says, and is suddenly very aware that everyone in the world that he cares about is on this ship. Inko, Yuki, Nina, Calm, Princess Asseylum… Inaho. Everyone is in danger. Everyone could die right now. Slaine almost wonders if caring about people is more of a burden than it’s worth. If he didn’t care, he wouldn’t be so desperate right now. He wouldn’t be so scared. It wouldn’t hurt if anyone died. But he can’t not care. He can’t not love Inaho. He won’t not be destroyed if they die.

“Jump!” Yuki says. 

And the hatch opens. All Slaine can see is the clouds from the blizzard below him and Inaho’s orange kat in front of him. It’s a long way down.  
Inaho’s kat immediately runs and jumps off the hanger. Slaine is right behind him, cursing Inaho for being so stupid, followed closely by the rest of the Mustang platoon.

And they’re falling. 

“Don’t get hit, don’t get hit…” he hears Inko muttering. 

“When you’re that scared, you’re more likely to get hit. Bullets are attracted to cowardice, stand proud and everything will move out of your way,” Mustang 44 tells Inko. Slaine appreciates the sentiment, as foolish as it is. Inko does too, it seems. 

And then the bullets fly up at them. Mustang 44’s kataphrakt explodes. 

They are being fired at. 

Slaine uses the Tharsis to easily avoid the shots coming towards him. It’s harder when he’s in free fall. It’s harder to maneuver. He grits his teeth.

“Use my unit’s orange color as a guide,” Inaho says, and his kataphrakt speeds downwards, getting further away from Slaine. Slaine growls at Inaho’s recklessness and urges the Tharsis to go faster. 

“Nao! Slow down!” Yuki says. 

“I’ll use the decoys as a shield as I fall. And then once I’m through the clouds and sight the target, I’ll remain in freefall until the last second before decelerating.” Inaho says, like he isn’t putting himself in immense danger. 

Slaine sees the decoy in front of Inaho explode. “Orange!”

“Stay back, Bat.”

“No!”

Bullets and snow whoosh past him. He manages to avoid them, while keeping a close eye on Inaho. It’s not like he can do anything. One properly placed bullet to Inaho’s kataphrakt, and there is nothing Slaine can do to save him. Why is he always so helpless?!

“Target sighted,” Inaho says. And a few seconds later Slaine also sees the landing castle below them. 

Inaho deploys his parachutes and begins slowing down to land. Slaine is still too far behind him. Inaho is going in alone. Inaho is practically killing himself. Slaine frantically fires at a turret that is shooting at Inaho, trying to do anything to make sure Inaho doesn’t get hit. It explodes. 

Inaho takes out another turret before roughly landing on the platform. He fires a round of rockets out of his kataphrakt, destroying all the turrets on the landing castle. 

“This is Mustang 22. Landing zone secured,” Inaho says, just as Slaine lands next to him.

“Mustang 22, I have visual. Approaching,” Yuki says. “No more crazy stunts, Nao!”

“I figured the more of their anti-air I destroyed, the easier it’d be for those behind me to land.”

Inaho did this to protect Yuki, Inko, everyone. He did it to protect Slaine. He easily could have been killed. It was a miracle that he wasn’t. If Inaho keeps doing things like this, to keep Slaine safe, he won’t live.

“Inaho!” Slaine desperately yells through their comm. “You can’t just-!”

“That’s odd,” Inaho says. “Communications are strangely clear.”

“If you do something like that again, I won’t forgive you!” Slaine tells Inaho. The blizzard rages around them. Slaine struggles to keep his sights on Inaho. 

“I don’t care.”

“I won’t let you go without me!”

“I won’t let you die.”

“You-!”

“Control to Princess 1. Stand by and wait for jump signal.” The Deucalion says. Princess Asseylum is coming now. He has to protect them both. 

“Roger. Princess 1 proceeding to jump position.”

“Keep your passenger safe, no matter what,” Control tells Princess 1. “Defend her with your very life! Princess 1, jump!”

“Princess 1, jumping-!” The man’s voice cuts off suddenly.

“Enemy fire!”

Slaine wants to scream. What is happening?! 

Someone gasps on the comm. “That can’t be! There’s nothing on the radar!” 

“Fire anti-air cannons! Protect the Deucalion!”

Slaine hears explosions in the background. 

And then shots from in front of him.

Inaho is firing at enemies that appeared on the landing castle. Slaine turns and begins to fire as well. The landing castle is a storm of bullets and snow. He moves right beside Inaho. If something is going to hit Inaho, the Tharsis will see it in time to stop it. At least he can do that much. 

“Where is Seylum?” Inaho asks. 

“We haven’t received the signal!” Yuki answers. Slaine gets a bad feeling in his stomach. There is no more communication from the Deucalion since the explosions. But all he can do right now is protect those that are here with him right now. 

“Warrant officer Kaizuka!” Inko yells. “Three o clock!”

Slaine looks up and gasps. 

“Is that…the Deucalion?!” Yuki yells. 

Slaine watches in horror as the Deucalion, tilted, with obvious little control, comes crashing towards the landing castle. 

“All units, disperse!” Yuki says.

The Deucalion is heading straight for them. 

“Inaho, move!” Slaine says, and they jump to opposite sides as the Deucalion smashes into the surface of the landing castle. Snow flies angrily around as the whole structure shakes. 

All Slaine can see is a huge wall made of the Deucalion through the snow storm. Inaho must be on the other side. “Inaho!” he yells through the comm. 

No response. Shots are still being fired.

“Inaho!”

-

Count Saazbuam watches with mild fascination as the Deucalion crashes downwards. 

“Deucalion. They transplanted the aldnoah drive from the old unit, but with Orlane dead, it coulndn’t have been active. That must mean Princess Asseylum reactivated it,” his face twists with disgust. “What an abomination.” 

Those foolish terrans didn’t even know how to use it properly. They didn’t even see his Dioscuria approaching. They were helpless to avoid the missiles. 

The terrans would lose this battle. He already wiped out two platoons of kataphrakts inside United Earth’s own headquarters. Princess Asseylum would die today.

Slaine Troyard was an idiot if he thought that Saazbuam would just let the Princess’s speech reach Vers. He let the boy in the moon base, he told him his story, he allowed him to escape. And he let him think that he had won. 

That was the best way, after all. The terrans let their guard down. They tried to broadcast a message. They basically handed him the Princess’s location. Their arrogance is why they were all going to die today. 

His dreams would finally be realized.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -So sorry for the late update!! I am pretty busy this week, but next week I should be able to get back to regular once a week chapters! :)
> 
> -I'm also sorry for doing this to them ;( 
> 
> -I'm excited for the next chapter! Thanks for reading and for all your great comments!! :)


	20. Chapter 20

Smoke, snow and dust swirl around as Inaho looks at the Deucalion sticking out of the landing castle. Static fills his ears from the headset. He makes some adjustments to the channel, and tries to reconnect. The static clears.

“Slaine,” Inaho says. “Are you ok?”

“Inaho!” Slaine gaps through the microphone. “What were you doing?! Why didn’t you answer?!” 

Inaho is confident that Slaine is alright if he is capable of yelling right now. 

“The blizzard and crash must have affected the communication channel.”

“The Deucalion?!” Inko says through the other channel. “Why would they…?”

“They had no choice but to make a frontal assault?” Inaho suggests, himself wondering why Captain Magbaredge would crash the ship into the landing castle.

“Control! This is Mustang leader!” Yuki says. “Please respond!”

No response. Everyone is silent, waiting. 

Finally, Inaho has had enough. They are in danger just sitting here. He moves to the Deucalion and pries open the hanger. Yuki quickly follows after him. Slaine must be on the other side of the ship. Inaho doesn’t see the Tharsis. But there are no more thermal energy readings from enemies, so Slaine should be fine for now. Though, Inaho keeps an eye on the radar.

“Princess 1!” Yuki says, urging her kat through the open hatch. Yuki lowers herself out of the kataphrakt. Inaho and the rest of the Mustang platoon guard her from any chance of attack. 

After a few minutes: “Princess Asseylum is confirmed alive.”

Right after: “Control to Mustang platoon. Do you copy?”

“Is the Deucalion ok?! Is everyone on the bridge ok?!” Inko asks frantically as Yuki carefully moves Princess Asseylum to her kataphrakt. The other pilot must be incapacitated or dead.. “What about Nina and Calm? Are they ok?!”

“Somehow,” Lt. Marito laughs “Well. Maybe ‘we’re all ok’ isn’t quite honest. This might be more of a ‘don’t worry, go on without us’ situation.”

“Warrant Officer Kaizuka… Princess 1, continue your mission,” Captain Magbaredge says. “Can you do that?”

Inaho hears Yuki hesitate before agreeing. It’s not like there’s a choice anyway. 

“Amifumi, Kaizuka junior,” Lt. Marito says. “I want you to cover Warrant Officer Kaizuka.”

“Acknowledged,” Inaho says.

“Rodger,” Inko sniffs. 

“Warrant Officer Kaizuka, taking over as pilot. Princess 1, continuing mission,” Yuki’s kataphrakt rises and begins to move. 

Inaho is struck by how silent Slaine has been through all this. “Slaine?”

He hears Slaine sniff. Oh. He was crying. “Mustang 33, Rodger,” Slaine says determinedly, not talking to Inaho. 

And they head through the storm on the landing castle. Slaine’s kataphrakt finally comes back into view, and Inaho feels much better now that he can actually see Slaine. 

“You awake?” He hears Yuki ask. Princess Asseylum must be conscious. “This is going to get a little rough, hold tight, your highness. You didn’t seem to be hurt, but if I missed something, speak up,” Yuki says gently.

“Why…?” Princess Asseylum asks quietly. “You hate us… don’t you? The versians who did this to earth, who took so many lives…you hate us don’t you?” She asks sadly. 

Inaho is slightly frustrated that that is what she is worried about now. When they are in the middle on an important mission. When lives are on the line. She can’t be acting like this now. Why doesn’t she understand? She should understand by now. She should have figured it out.

“Seylum,” he says. “What does it take to end a war? Do you know?”

“Well, if both sides wish for peace and set aside their hatred…”

“No,” Inaho says, and hears her surprised gasp. “Warfare is nothing but a means of negotiation between states. Wars break out even when there’s no hatred. Territory, resources, or interests that you are determined to own. Ideology, religion, pride. Wars are fought over those objectives all the time. Meaning that when those objectives are met, the war will end. That, or, the war ends when the human cost outweighs the gains.” 

Princess Asseylum has been sheltered for far too long. Slaine would never tell her, no one would ever tell her. She would remain ignorant forever. Which would be fine, if it wasn’t endangering their mission. Wasn’t endangering Slaine’s life. Slaine probably won’t like Inaho being this blunt with her, telling her how the world really is. But it has to be done. “Anger and hatred. Those are nothing more than tools to tilt a war in your favor. I’m not interested in those emotions.”

“Inaho…” She mumbles. 

“So I wouldn’t hate anyone just because they’re martian,” he says, getting back to her original point. If he connects it all, maybe she will understand. 

He hears Inko and Seylum make pleased noises. Slaine makes a sound that Inaho can’t tell if he’s angry or just resigned to accept that Seylum needs to know about the world. 

“Oh?” A deeper, male voice says. “I would gladly hate a terran for that fact alone.”

Everyone gasps, and Slaine makes a choked sound, and Inaho immediately knows that Slaine recognizes the voice, this Count Saazbuam. It’s not fear, or anger, though. It’s just surprise. Slaine doesn’t have horrible feelings about this person… 

But that doesn’t matter right now, because thermal signatures begin popping up like crazy on his radar. 

Rockets. 

“All units, scatter!” Yuki yells. 

Inaho slides his kataphrakt in Slaine’s direction, forcing Slaine behind him, as the rockets crash down and explode on top of the landing castle. 

A dark colored martian kataphrakt lands in the middle of them. “Saazbuam of the Vers Orbital Knights’ 37 clans has arrived,” the voice says. “Please make your peace, your highness.”

“Count Saazbuam?!” Princess Asseylum exclaims. “It was you?!”

“How did he tap our encrypted comms?!” Inko asks. 

Probably the same way Inaho taps them.

“All units, restrict further communication to laser comms!” Yuki tells everyone. 

“Yuki,” Inaho says. “Continue the mission. Inko, Slaine, you provide support for Yuki. I’ll hold him off.”

“Don’t be stupid! You don’t know what his combat capability is! You can’t win alone!” Yuki says. 

Slaine growls. “If you think I’m letting you-!”

“I don’t need to win. I only need to slow him down.”

“You aren’t planning on acting as a human shield, are you?!” Yuki demands. 

“That’s an ineffective means of buying time. Go, hurry.”

“Orange,” Slaine says, Inaho can hear the deadly anger in his voice. “You’re not-”

“If you don’t go, we will all die. You need to protect Seylum. If she dies, it won’t matter what happens to me. The faster you get her to the aldnoah drive, the better chance I have. So I don’t have time for you to explain his kataphrakts skills. Just go.”

Inaho can feel that Slaine is torn. “You better not die, Orange!” Slaine yells, and Inaho can hears the tears in his voice. He regrets making Slaine make this choice.

“I won’t. You’re wasting time.”

Slaine’s kataphrakt immediately turns and runs after Yuki’s and Inko’s.

“Don’t die, Slaine,” Inaho says softly as he faces the martian kataphrakt in front of him. He hopes he made the right choice. That he is sending Slaine into safer territory. That he can protect Yuki and Seylum and Inko. He will have to trust that Slaine doesn’t need Inaho to protect him. 

“I like your reckless courage, warrior of earth,” Count Saazbuam says. “But you will have no mercy from me!” The kataphrakt raises its arms and shoots missiles towards Inaho. 

Inaho quickly uses his propulsion and manages to slide out of the rockets range, just barely. 

Decoys confuse guided missiles, but unguided rockets are unaffected.

It’s only been a second, and Inaho already knows he’s outmatched in terms of weaponry. And if this Saazbuam was smart enough to hack the encrypted comms, Inaho might be facing a real challenge. 

Inaho fires back.

“Don’t get too full of yourself, terran!” Saazbuam growls. “Light of aldnoah!”

Inaho lets out his breath as kataphrakt pieces burst from the headquarters and attack to the already imposing martian kataphrakt. 

“Behold! The Dioscuria!” Saazbuam announces, his kataphrakt now huge. 

Inaho’s face is grim. His chances are even lower than they were a minute ago. At least he made the right decision by sending Slaine with Yuki. 

He fires at the Dioscuria, but nothing hits. 

_My rounds, they’re…_

“Dimensional barrier, activated!” Saazbuam says, as Inaho’s shots all bounce off the kataphrakt. “Energy joints, linked. Field generator, active. Blade field, engaged,” The Dioscuria raises a hang, and a giant glowing blade lights up. “Sword drawn.”

It comes crashing down towards Inaho before he can even think about a counter measure. He barely manages to jump back to avoid it. If the count wasn’t so intent on announcing all of his weaponry, Inaho might have been destroyed by it. 

_That weapon, it’s…_

“This is Oldenburg leader. Stand by for assistance Mustang 22.” 

Anyone who comes here will die.

“Inaho!” Slaine says through static, signaling that he is reentering Inaho’s range. “I’m coming back!”

“No!” Inaho says forcefully. “Fall back!”

Inaho hears Slaine make a shocked sound, no doubt at how intense Inaho sounded compared to normal. But Inaho is scarcely surviving. He can’t protect Slaine here. 

Luckily, Slaine is too far away to quickly make his way back here. The Oldenburg platoon, however, has already arrived. 

Inaho grits his teeth. He hopes Slaine has enough sense to stay away. 

“Fools,” Count Saazbuam says, swiping a huge, metal hand into the Oldenburg platoon, completely destroying them. 

He distiches an arm and sends it flying towards Inaho.

Inaho grunts with the effort of trying to avoid it. He is too outmatched. He can’t just avoid the attacks forever. Eventually he will mess up and get killed.

-

Slaine quickly informs Yuki he is going back to help Inaho. Yuki doesn’t complain. The way is clear. They can handle it. But Inaho is out there alone, and Slaine can tell he’s in trouble. Especially by the clear panic in his voice when he told Slaine to stay back. Inaho is showing emotion, so it must be bad. Inaho doesn’t even know about Count Saazbuam’s Dioscuria, its skills, or anything. 

He moves the Tharsis back through the landing castle, desperate to get back up to the top, to Inaho. 

Guilt crashes over Slaine. If he had just told someone that Count Saazbuam was behind the assassination plan… if he had at least told Inaho… they could have been prepared for this. But he kept it hidden. Just because he wasn’t ready to face it. Because he didn’t want to share his feelings with anyone. 

And now Inaho is in trouble because of it. In trouble because of Slaine. Again. 

Slaine stops and gasps at the scene he has just arrived on. This section of the landing castle is in ruins, martian and terran kataphrakts both fighting. So many dead. 

Slaine doesn’t notice the stray rocket heading for him, until it is shot away from him, the explosion jarring him. 

He looks over in shock to the martian kataphrakt who saved his life. 

“Come on, let’s move,” the kataphrakt says over his comm.

“You… you saved me?” 

“You’re martian, aren’t you?” The man asks rhetorically. “Now come on. We all just want to end this war and get home.”

Slaine is horrified. This man assumed he was martian because of his kataphrakt. He saved his life. And Slaine was supposed to kill him. This same man would kill Princess Asseylum or Inaho without hesitation. 

But this same man also just wanted to go home. He wanted the war to end. Just like Slaine. This war is the worst thing, it is destroying so many lives. 

There’s no way Slaine can kill him. It would feel like the worst kind of betrayal. Afterall, Slaine is kind of martian. He grew up on Vers. He was a martian soldier, he’s loyal to Princess Asseylum. Slaine is probably more martian than terran... He’s not fighting for Earth. He’s fighting for Princess Asseylum, her dream. And Inaho. 

So while Slaine and this man are on opposite sides right now, they weren’t always. They probably won’t always be. How can he kill this man that saved his life? But he has to get to Inaho…

“Come on,” the man urges again. Forward. Towards Princess Asseylum. 

Before Slaine can decide what to do, the man’s kataphrakt explodes. A terran platoon stands in the ruined room. 

Slaine feels tears rise up unbidden to his eyes. The man didn’t even know Slaine, but still he saved his life. He trusted Slaine. And that act got him killed. Slaine doesn’t belong to either side. And he’s getting both sides killed. 

He shakes his head to clear his thoughts. Inaho is his first priority. Count Saazbuam’s kataphrakt is deadly… Inaho can’t take it alone… Slaine never should have left him. He has to save him.

_Stay alive, Orange._

_You better live, Inaho._

_I’m coming._

-

I have to get out of the open. He will be more constricted in an enclosed area.

Inaho fires his rockets at the already destroyed roof. The smoke and snow should conceal him and give him enough time to move before Saazbuam can attack.

Inaho rushes forwards and drops into the hole he helped create. 

He crashes through the opening, unable to stabilize his selphinr. He had meant to simply drop to the next level, but he underestimated the force his falling kataphrakt would have, and the fact that the stability of the landing castle was already in question. 

So, he goes crashing through the next floor, and the next. 

He grunts as his head jerks sideways and hits the wall. He feels blood run down his face as his airbag expands around his head, protecting it from further impact as he is tossed around the cockpit.

And finally the kataphrakt still. He must have landed on a floor. His head is spinning. At least he completed his objective, even if it was less graceful than he wanted, even if he and his kataphrakt are more damaged than he would like. This is fine, he can work with this.

“Inaho?!” He hears Inko yell. 

He looks at his radar. 

Yuki and Inko are right in front of him. He crashed into the room they were carrying Seylum to. 

Suddenly his plan doesn’t seem to have been the best idea. He tries to move and stifles a groan. He is more hurt than he thought.

_Where’s Slaine?_

He’s just about to ask them, and tell them to hurry up, keep moving. But then the Dioscuria falls through the same hole, landing much easier than Inaho did. 

“Princess Asseylum,” Saazbuam says. “Your life, if you please.”

Inko and Yuki frantically fire at the martian kataphrakt. There’s no point, the dimensional barrier prevents any shots from hitting. 

“He has a barrier, too!” Inko exclaims. 

“Inko. Get out of here,” Inaho manages to say. “Hurry.”

Slaine must have gone back to try to find him. Inaho would have been angry at this, if it wasn’t for the fact that Slaine’s desire to sacrifice his life to save Inaho probably saved Slaine’s life instead.

“No way! I can’t just leave you!” Inko says.

“Don’t worry about me. Just run.”

“Don’t be an idiot!”

Inaho faintly smiles. It sounds like what Slaine would say. He’s glad Slaine got away. He’s glad Slaine doesn’t have to see this. 

If Inko and Yuki can get Seylum to the aldnoah drive, they can end this. Slaine will be ok. 

But those two keep firing at Saazbuam. Inaho is getting frustrated by their useless attempts. He needs to disable Count Saazbaum somehow.

He sees Count Saazbuam prepare to launch one of this arms. 

“Dodge it…” he chokes out to them. 

Yuki gasps and sidesteps the projectile. 

The arm clips Inko, and her kataphrakt flies to the side, smoking. 

Inaho doesn’t hesitate. He raises his gun and fires at the Dioscuria, all of his shots landing, causing explosions on the surface of the martian kataphrakt.

“Like I thought,” Inaho mumbles. “He has to lower the barrier when he launches the arms. It’s because the arm thrusters interfere with the barrier.”

“Hang on!” Inko yells. “Did you use me as a decoy?!”

Inaho doesn’t defend himself. If she wants to jump to conclusions in the middle of a battle, she can. Besides, she’s perfectly fine. If being used as a decoy helps them defeat Saazbuam, she shouldn’t complain. Especially since she wouldn't run when he gave her the chance.

Yuki quickly picks up on Inaho’s discovery and fires more rounds at the Dioscuria as the arm is still detached. She does some more damage before the arm connects and he is able to raise the barrier again.

“The barrier needs to have a gap. If you’re watching the instant he raises the barrier, it’s easy to spot,” Inaho says.

“You try my patience!” Saazbuam yells, rising up over Inaho. 

“Nao! Run!” Yuki yells.

“No. I’ve been waiting for him to get close,” Inaho says, as he fires accurately at the gap in the barrier. He jumps back as a huge explosion rattles the Dioscuria, and fills the landing castle. 

The Dioscuria falls, and Inaho sees the barrier go down. 

“Why, you little…”

Inaho thrusts upwards and lands atop the martian kataphrakt. He points his gun towards the cockpit, where he knows its occupant lies. 

“And they can’t raise a barrier along contact surfaces.”

This battle ended up turning in his favor. Even though he was caught off guard by Inko and Yuki being here, he managed to use that to his advantage. Despite the throbbing in his head, and the minor aches in his body, he is unharmed. 

Yuki, Inko and Seylum have exited their kataphrakts and are heading to the aldnoah drive. This will all be over soon. 

Inaho fires at the cockpit, and hears Saazbuam yell. 

“Come on, Inaho!” Inko says, as they head to the drive room. 

But this fight isn’t over yet. Saazbuam’s kataphrat is already rising. “No. You go on ahead. I’ll be right behind you.”

The Dioscuria is heavily damaged, but still functional. And its pilot is still alive, and mad. 

“Filthy terran!”

Uncharacteristic anger fills Inaho. He thinks of Slaine’s tears, Slaine’s father’s video, Slaine’s scars. Slaine’s been called a filthy terran almost his whole life. He’s suffered through abuse and harm on mars, at the hands of his man, and men like him. And still Slaine managed to keep his hope, keep the light in his eyes, was able to smile and laugh. Was able to fall in love with Inaho. Despite the scars. 

Inaho releases his gun and slides it across the floor. He puts his kataphrakt in fighting stance. 

He’s going to show this martian than terrans aren’t inferior. He’s going to beat him, for Slaine. Slaine is never going to be told he’s nothing but a filthy terrnan, or worthless ever again. 

“You dare?!” Saazbuam yells and charges towards Inaho. 

Inaho dodges the attack and places his own, knocking the martian kataphrakt back. 

Inaho rises above him, ready to finish it.

“Damn you..! You’re kind could never understand…! The envy and hatred towards terrans that has been planted in us, constantly tarnished our souls and robbed us of our ability to live as human beings! You, with your lives of indolence, in a land of plenty, could never understand how we feel! The resentment of having that hatred ingrained in you! The sense of futility when you realize what was done! The regret of failing to protect the one you love…You could never understand!”

It’s just the ramblings of a man about to die, but Inaho is struck anyway. Failing to protect the one you love…

If he failed to protect Slaine…

_Where is Slaine?_

The Dioscuria flies at Inaho. Inaho is filled with need to find Slaine. He had assumed that Slaine would be fine, but what if…?

He punches the Dioscuria and hears Saazbuam yell again. This is almost over. Then he can find Slaine. 

The martian kataphrakt crumbles to the floor. 

“Optical seeker, down. Routing auxiliary sensor feed to main monitor. Right arm, power cut.”

“I will defeat all who hate…I will break the cycle of hatred…”

It’s a foolish sentiment. There will always be hatred. There will always be war.

He raises his left arm over Count Saazbuam. 

“Inaho!” Slaine’s desperate voice comes in static through the comm. 

Inaho stops mid swing “Slaine?”

Slaine’s kataphrakt rushes into view, and the power goes out all at once. 

Inaho sees a shape rushing at him, and before he can react, it slams into him and they go crashing through the wall into the next room. 

Inaho’s head slams forward and everything goes black. 

-

Slaine leaves the Tharsis and rushes into the hole in the wall after Inaho and Count Saazbuam. 

Inaho has to be ok…

It’s all his fault… again.

He had been able to hear snippets of Inaho and Count Saazbuam’s conversation through his link. He quickly discerned that they couldn’t hear him though.  
He was frantically searching for Inaho, and couldn’t find him. He was just about to give into despair when he heard Inaho’s voice through his headset. He followed the conversation until it got clearer, leading the way to Inaho. 

He could tell from the snippets that Inaho was still in trouble. 

But then Count Saazbuam mentioned his regret about not being able to save the one he loved… Orlane. About breaking the cycle of hatred… There didn’t need to be any more Orlane’s… any more Marlene’s… Break the cycle of hared… that’s what Slaine wanted. He doesn’t want Inaho to become victim to this war, to the hatred like so many before him. 

And Slaine turned the corner, and saw Inaho about to kill Count Saazbuam. 

He needed Count Saazbuam. Count Saazbuam could help them break the cycle… help them end this for good… help Slaine keep Inaho safe forever, not just for a few tentative days of peace. 

He saw their future the way it was now: winning this battle, but the war raging on, for years. The cycle of hatred continuing. He and Inaho never able to fully escape the war. He and Inaho fighting forever. Inaho always in danger. Sooner or later, their luck would run out, and that time, Inaho wouldn’t wake up.

But if they break the cycle… They can live in peace. Everyone will be happy. Inaho will be safe. It’s the future Slaine wants, the future Slaine wants to fight for. 

Break the cycle…

He called out Inaho’s name.

Inaho hesitated, and the lights went out. The aldnoah drive was offline.

Count Saazbuam took the chance to thrust at Inaho, crashing them both through the wall in what looked like a deadly tangle. 

So now Slaine is running through rubble, trying to find the orange kataphrakt. Praying that Inaho is fine. That he didn’t just kill Inaho by trying to save him. That he didn’t just make the biggest mistake in his life. 

-

Inaho manages to open one eye as light fills the cockpit.

“Inaho!” 

What is going on? Inaho’s head feels like it is splitting open. He feels hot, sticky blood on his face and in his left eye. He can’t open it, it’s too full of blood. 

“Inaho!” Another sob yells, and Slaine’s face blurs in front of him. 

“Slaine…?” Inaho manages to choke out. His body isn’t responding. Everything is hazy, his head feels like it's full of cotton. 

“Inaho! Inaho…!” Slaine just keeps repeating his name. Inaho feels his mind clearing a little. He must look pretty bad if Slaine is lost for words. What happened?

“Sorry…” Inaho mumbles. “I can’t see very well. I have blood in my eyes…” He raises a hand to his left eye, feeling the stickiness. 

“Inaho…” Slaine’s hands grasp his hand, and gently pull him out of the kataphrakt. “I’m right here, Inaho…it’s all my fault… it’s all my fault.”

Slaine is crying. Inaho still doesn’t know what happened, but he knows he doesn’t want Slaine to cry. 

Slaine kneels in front of him and Inaho manages to sit up. He reaches his hand to Slaine’s face and smiles weakly at the feel of it under his hand. Slaine is here, Slaine is safe.

“Inaho…” Slaine sobs some more. 

“I’m fine…Slaine. So… stop crying.”

Slaine’s hand tries to wipe away blood from Inaho’s face, but it comes back covered. He grabs Inaho’s hands again. “You’re not fine! You-!”

Three shots ring out. Slaine releases Inaho’s hands and quickly turns around in terror. Inaho struggles to get up. 

Slaine makes the worst sound Inaho has ever heard and raises his gun. Inaho manages to see Princess Asseylum laying on the floor, blood pooling around her. 

Dread fills him.

“Count Saazbuam…” Slaine whispers in horror.

“You saved me, Slaine,” Inaho hears Saazbuam say. 

What is he talking about? 

Slaine gasps and clutches his chest. It is the worst thing Inaho has ever seen, Seylum is dead, Slaine’s breaking…

Inaho desperately tries to reach a hand up to Slaine, but it keeps falling, he can’t reach. 

“Well done,” Saazbuam says.

Slaine screams and fires his gun in rapid succession. Inaho hears Count Saazbuam’s groans of pain, Slaine’s murderous yells. 

Slaine keeps firing and firing, no doubt putting multiple holes in Saazbaum, until finally stopping, lowering the gun and crying. 

Inaho tries again to reach out to Slaine.

Count Saazbuam coughs. He’s still alive. 

Slaine raises the gun again, and Inaho knows Slaine is going to kill him. 

His hand finally connects with Slaine’s arm. “Don’t…” 

Slaine turns his tear stained face towards Inaho. “What….?”

“Don’t kill him…” Inaho gasps out.

Slaine shouldn’t have to kill anyone. Slaine shouldn’t have the happiness taken out his eyes. Slaine shouldn’t be cold and angry. 

Slaine looks at Inaho in confusion. Inaho tries clears his head further. He gathers all the strength he has left for what he has to do.

“You need him. Seylum may still be alive… Take her back to Vers. They can save her…” Inaho struggles to say. He feels sluggish and cold.

Slaine’s confusion turns to horror as he understands. Inaho wants to smile at how quick Slaine is, how smart. Slaine lowers down and clutches Inaho. “No…! No! I can’t leave you! I won’t leave you!”

It’s the last thing Inaho wants; Slaine back on Vers. But Seylum is a part of Slaine. Slaine would break if she died. Slaine wouldn’t be the same, he would have to live with the knowledge that he might have been able to save her. Inaho can’t let that happen to him. Inaho has to do this so that they can both live.

“I’m fine, Slaine. You have to go.”

“No… no…You’re an idiot if you think…”

Inaho cups Slaine’s face with a bloody hand. He wishes he could open his left eye, he wishes he could see Slaine with both eyes this one last time. “Slaine…”

Inaho thinks about the pile of books Slaine wanted to read, the dinner date they never got to finish. All the things he still wanted to say to Slaine, all the things he still wanted to do with Slaine. 

His future was supposed to be with Slaine. They were supposed to have more time. If he had known they had so little time he would have done so much more.

If they had all the time in the world, Inaho would have never left Slaine. He would have held him forever. He would have followed Slaine anywhere, if he could have. If he could turn back time, he and Slaine would be together.

Inaho suddenly recalls the black hole of pain inside of Slaine. He saw it, he felt it, when they were linked together. It’s inside Slaine, it is always there, threatening to overtake him. If they had all the time in the world, Inaho would have dedicated himself to eradicating it, or at least making it smaller. Slaine shouldn’t feel like that, shouldn’t have that pain inside of him.

There’s something else inside Slaine too, besides the pain. Something that only comes out in certain times. Something that has probably always been, and always will be, part of Slaine. It’s there when Slaine goes cold, it’s there when Slaine’s eyes are empty, and it’s there when Slaine kills someone. It’s a darkness that highly contrasts with Slaine’s usual compassion, and life, and emotions. 

Still, it’s part of Slaine, so Inaho can’t hate it. But he needs it to not to take over Slaine. He needs Slaine to be able to control it, not let the coldness envelop him. If they had all the time in the world, Inaho would make sure it didn’t.

But Inaho can’t protect Slaine on Vers. Slaine needs someone. Slaine needs light in his life. Slaine’s face should be full of happiness, not despair, his eyes shouldn’t be empty. Slaine needs love to help him. And it can’t be Inaho’s. 

_Please, let him be happy. Please, let him live._

Inaho doesn’t know who he’s asking. He doesn’t care. He doesn’t care if he dies, as long as Slaine lives, and can have joy in his life. Slaine has his whole life left to live. 

And it’ll have to be without Inaho. If there was another way, he would do it in a heartbeat. But he’s been through all the scenarios. And this is the only one that works.

Inaho can’t look away from Slaine’s face. He can’t forget it. He tries again to open his other eye, wanting to see Slaine fully. But he can’t. He can’t see Slaine, he can’t save Slaine, he can’t stay with Slaine. 

He feels something prickling in his eyes, and rolling down his cheeks, mingling with the blood. 

“You have to go, Slaine,” Inaho says. 

“You can’t just…” Slaine whispers, but Inaho knows Slaine knows it’s the only option. 

“Maybe this is fate,” Inaho attempts a smile. “Or maybe there’s a parallel universe where we are together.”

Inaho’s attempt to cheer Slaine up backfires. Slaine cries harder.

This is the hardest thing Inaho’s ever had to do. He used to think that death was the worst possible outcome of a battle, but this is far worse. 

Inaho pulls himself up and pushes his lips to Slaine’s. He puts his arms around Slaine, and he can’t even feel the pain. 

Slaine kisses back desperately, and Inaho tastes salt and blood. 

Their lips move together, and Inaho tries to put all his feelings that he wasn’t good enough at expressing into the kiss. He puts all his goodbyes into the kiss. The world disappears for just a moment. And for that moment they are just two boys in love. He almost believes that when he opens his eyes, both will open. He won’t be covered in blood. They can kiss all they want, and afterwards they can go eat dinner and read books. For that moment, they have all the time in the world.

Inaho pulls back with a gasp, and time starts again. He wishes his mind could focus properly, that he could move properly, that he could see properly. 

He rests his forehead against Slaine’s and strokes the dusty blonde hair. “I’ll always love you, Slaine.”

Inaho never thought that he would love someone. And definitely couldn’t imagine loving someone as much as he does Slaine. 

Even though this the most painful thing Inaho’s been through, even though it would have been easier if he didn’t, he doesn’t regret loving Slaine at all.

Slaine closes his eyes and lets the tears flow freely. He pulls Inaho tighter to him. Inaho ignores the pain. “Inaho…” he sobs. “I love you so much.”

“Then go save Seylum. Maybe she can finally end this war. I’ll find you, Bat. I promise,” Inaho offers Slaine another smile. He hopes for Slaine to smile again. He wants to see Slaine’s smile again. 

But Slaine isn’t going to smile, and Inaho can’t really see. Slaine holds Inaho tightly, before releasing him. Inaho struggles to not fall to the floor, knowing Slaine won’t leave if he does. “I’ll always wait for you, Orange.”

Slaine walks over to Seylum and gently picks her up, and walks towards the Tharsis. 

Inaho watches Slaine go, and he loves him so much. He can’t believe he was able to love somebody this much. He can’t believe he has to let Slaine go.

He watches Slaine softly put Seylum down. 

He will find Slaine again. This can’t be the last time he sees Slaine. This can’t be the end. Somehow, they will find their way back together. They are a part of each other, Inaho needs him. And Inaho’s scared. He’s really scared, for maybe the first time. He’s scared for Slaine. He’s scared he’s never going to see Slaine again. He’s so scared.

Slaine walks back over, and Inaho succeeds in standing up. He’s going to properly hug Slaine again, properly kiss him. Tell him that he loves him, that they will find each other. He needs to tell Slaine. He has to.

He reaches out for Slaine. 

And there’s a loud noise.

_I’m sorry, Slaine._

And Slaine’s wide, blue eyes before blackness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -I'm sorry :'(
> 
> -This was so hard to write! 
> 
> -I think you guy can see the direction this is heading. Next chapter will start the time jump into season 2, which I'm really excited for. 
> 
> -I hope you liked it! Thanks so much for reading and comments!! :)


	21. Chapter 21

**19 Months Later**

Slaine pilots the Tharsis back to Moon Base. He is relieved he managed to protect the martian soldiers battling out in the satellite belt. They have families they want to get home to. They are part of the oppressed people, suffering under Versian monarchy, and still willing to fight for their country.

He didn’t even think twice about killing those terran soldiers. 

In this war, there are no sides. Not to him at least. He will do what is necessary. Two years ago, he was killing martian soldiers. Now he is killing terran soliders. It doesn’t matter. They’re all part of the war. No matter what side he fights for he will be killing good people. He will be killing bad people. They are all just people. 

So it doesn’t bother him that he is fighting against terrans, though some might call him a traitor to his own people. 

“That landing was skillful,” Count Saazbuam tells Slaine as he exists the Tharsis. “One might never guess we are in an uneven gravity field. Your skill have improved even more, Slaine.”

Slaine floats over to where Saazbuam and Harklight are standing. He bows slightly. “Your compliment honors me, Count Saazbuam.”

“Granting you the title of knight was a wise decision. How did the battle go?”

“I destroyed four enemy units.”

“Quite a coup, Milord Slaine,” Harklight says with a smile.

“Stop that, Mr. Harklight. There’s no need for ‘milord’ with me,” Slaine says. 

“That won’t do, Milord. I am your servant.”

“But you’re older than I am, and…I’m a terran.”

“That does not change the fact that you are a knight, milord. And I ask that you refrain using ‘mister’ with me, milord Slaine.”

Slaine is tired of this game. He’s tired of putting on this fake smile for Saazbaum and Harklight. He couldn’t care less that Harklight calls him ‘milord’. Really, it took Slaine long enough to work up to being a knight, he shouldn’t undermine his own first position of power. 

But he has to keep the show going. So he smiles and makes pleasantries with Saazbuam and Harklight as they head to Princess Lemrina’s chambers. 

“Pardon the interruption,” Saazbuam tells Princess Lemrina as the three enter her room. She spins her chair to face them, and they all bow as one. “You seem to be in good spirits, Princess Lemrina.”

“I am weary, Count Saazbuam,” She says, her face blank. “How fares the world?”

“The invasions of North and South America are complete, and their takeover is underway. As for Eurasia and the Far East, UFE counterattacks continue due to the surrender of the landing castles there.”

Lemrina’s face never changes, as she turns back to the large window in front of her. She stares out at space. “Will I be able to go down to earth?”

“We expect the UFE to be exhausted soon. When that happens, you who inherit the bloodline of the emperor of Vers will be installed as-”

“Do not say that!” Lemrina interrupts. “I have never been pleased with the blood flowing in my veins. On the contrary, I find it repugnant. Am I only being kept alive because of the value of my blood? To merely be a tool that awakens aldnoah?”

Slaine hides his distaste. He’s been around Princess Lemrina long enough to know she isn’t a helpless girl, filled with sorrow. Despite what her words and her wheelchair portray. She is cunning and manipulative. She is vicious and full of anger. 

Slaine can’t say he likes her. He doesn’t like anyone. 

But she is far more dangerous to him than anyone else in the Moon Base. She is too smart, too willing to get what she wants. She is not controllable. Though, her façade is impressive. And that’s coming from someone who’s been keeping one up for almost two years. 

Slaine can’t help but be impressed. She’s lived with pain and disability and has been used her whole life, and still she is fighting. She hasn’t given up. And that’s why he needs to be careful around her.

“My apologies,” Count Saazbuam says sincerely. She has everyone fooled. 

Lemrina smiles slightly. “No, I understand. It was you who extended the hand of friendship to me, Count Saazbuam. Even if I curse my blood, I am grateful to you.”  
She’s good. She might even be better than Slaine. They both know perfectly well that Count Saazbuam never extended ‘the hand of friendship’ to anyone. He only kept things he found useful in his quest for vengeance. But still, she was able to say that with complete sincerity. 

“Slaine,” Lemrina says. 

Slaine keeps his smile light, betraying nothing. “Yes, highness. What is it?”

“Will you teach me of earth again?” She asks with a grin.

“Gladly.”

Saazbuam and Harklight bow and take their leave. Slaine waits until he and Lemrina are alone to drop his smile. Just like she didn’t fooled him, he could never fool her either. He looks at her with stony eyes. “What do you really want?”

“You’re so cold, Slaine. Emotionless.”

Slaine stares at her. This is the first time someone ever accused him of being emotionless. He guesses he is, to everyone here at least. But if Lemrina looked deep enough, if she could see into his heart, she would find hopes and dreams and promises and life and Inaho. All he has left is Inaho.

Lemrina smiles sweetly at him. “Maybe I really do what you to teach me of Earth, like you did my dear sister.”

“We both know you know more about earth than I do. You’ve researched it your whole life.”

“Yes, well, that’s about all I could do, being confined to this chair.”

Slaine ignores the attempt at pity. “What do you want?” He asks again.

“I wanted to congratulate you on achieving the rank of knight, Slaine Troyard,” She says. “I see you have gained his trust. Surprising, considering you practically killed him. You’re on your way up.”

Slaine narrows his eyes. He can’t tell what Lemrina thinks she knows. He knows she thinks that he has a plan. 

He knows that she has a plan. 

He doesn’t know what it is. Just as she doesn’t know what his is. 

For now, their goals are aligned. For now, they can help each other. 

Slaine bows, putting his smile back on. “Thank you, Princess Lemrina.”

-

“If there will be nothing else, milord Slaine, I will take my leave now,” Harklight says. 

Finally. “Thank you, Mr. Harklight,” Slaine says pleasantly and quickly closes the door to his room.

He strips off his uniform, every trace of a smile gone. He remembers two year ago, when these scars on him used to be a source of embarrassment, of shame. Of weakness. 

Now he looks at them and all he feels is anger. He doesn’t even care who sees them.

Of course, he can’t let anyone see this anger inside of him though. 

Slaine growls and punches the wall. It hurts his hand, but he doesn’t care. The tears on his face aren’t from that simple, physical pain. If they were, it would be much easier.

They’re from the fact that Slaine feels like he’s been torn in half. His chest aches so much he can barely stand it. He is able to keep this pain hidden from everyone, even Lemrina, even himself, all day, every day. 

But when he’s alone, when the day is finally over, when he doesn’t have to pretend anymore, he can’t hold it back anymore. 

“Inaho…” he sobs, fist still on the wall. “I miss you so much, Inaho. Why did this happen? Why…?”

Slaine knows the answer. It’s because of him. Because he called out Inaho’s name, and stopped Inaho from killing Saazbuam. That’s why this all happened. 

It’s all Slaine’s fault. Like usual. Everything is Slaine’s fault. 

The regret has eaten through him. He’s had to live with it for 19 months. And he doesn’t know if he’s succeeded. He feels dead. 

“I still need you, Inaho… I need you.”

Where would he and Inaho be right now, if Slaine had never called out his name? Would they be laughing with Inko and Calm and Nina right now? Would he be yelling at Inaho for doing something stupid? Would they be covering each other with kisses? 

Slaine closes his eyes and lets the tears fall. “You wouldn’t even want me anymore, now. I’m not the same… You wouldn’t love me…”

Slaine can’t even remember the last time he truly laughed. Sometime when he was with Inaho, 19 months ago. 

“You probably never even think about me…You probably forgot me long ago…”

These are the thoughts that haunt Slaine at night. Slaine is terrified that Inaho never loved him. That none of it was real. That Slaine was just a distraction. That Inaho realized that Slaine was worth nothing once he was gone. That Inaho really was emotionless, a robot, and didn’t care about anyone. That he had been just using Slaine. That it was all an experiment. That it was all fake. 

Slaine hates this doubt, this uncertainty. 

“Why didn’t you come for me?”

Slaine slumps down the wall. 

“Why didn’t you save me? Why didn’t you fight for me?!”

Sobs are racking Slaine’s body now. 

“Why did you leave me here, all alone?”

Slaine had waited. He waited for Inaho to contact him. For Inaho to sneak into moon base and rescue him. He waited for Inaho to keep his promise. His promise that they would find each other again. 

“Don’t forget me, Inaho… please, don’t forget me.”

He waited for months. He waited for a year. He waited and waited, and with every passing day, Slaine felt him lose a little bit more of himself in this place. 

He had to pretend to align himself with Count Saazbuam. He had to follow Saazbuam’s every order. He met Princess Lemrina after a few months. When Saazbuam began to trust Slaine. They were pleasant to each other at first. But she soon found out that she had no power over Slaine. That nothing did, anymore. And she didn’t like that. 

Every time they were alone, she would poke and prod, looking for weakness. She would try to manipulate him in different ways. 

Of course, nothing worked. The only thing that had power over Slaine was a million miles away somewhere. Out of her reach.

So they both kept their plans a secret. They both used each other. And Slaine was drawn further into darkness.

Really, Slaine tries to tell himself, there are a lot of reasons why Inaho wouldn’t come for him, why Inaho wouldn’t contact him. 

Maybe he doesn’t even know where Slaine is. Maybe he doesn’t know how to contact Slaine, can’t get through the encrypted channels. 

Maybe Inaho knows it’s too dangerous to contact Slaine. Maybe Inaho thinks he would be putting Slaine in danger by contacting him. Maybe he would be putting himself in danger. And Slaine has to admit, it’s true that contact would be risky. 

Maybe Inaho is waiting for Slaine to contact him. Except Slaine doesn’t know how. And even if he did, he could never do it without detection. Unlike the crew with Inaho, the martians are not aware of Slaine’s relationship with Inaho. And they would not take it well. So through the last year, Slaine has successfully resisted the temptation to try to contact the Deucalion. It would ruin the trust he has built up, and put the Deucalion in a precarious situation. 

Or maybe Inaho was physically unable to find Slaine. 

The memory that Slaine has tried, unsuccessfully, to keep at bay comes rushing back. 

19 months ago. 582 days ago. 

Inaho’s face was covered with blood. Only one eye was open, and it was slightly unfocused, giving away how hurt Inaho actually was. 

Inaho had just told Slaine that he had to leave. Told Slaine to leave him. 

Slaine couldn’t do it. He couldn’t leave Inaho. But he also couldn’t let Princess Asseylum die. 

His mind was whirling, thinking of a solution. He was walking back to Inaho, to hold him, to tell him he wouldn’t leave him. They could think of another way together. They could do it, he knew. 

But then a bang, and Inaho fell to the floor. Slaine ran, and saw blood pool all around Inaho’s head. So much blood. 

Count Saazbuam stood, shakily holding a gun, over Inaho’s body, and Slaine was screaming. 

“Choose, Slaine,” Count Saazbuam choked out. “You can stay here with these terrans and the world will fall, the war will continue on. Or you can come with me. I can save Princess Asseylum, and we can remake the world. We can break the cycle of hatred. Just like your father wanted… You saved me, Slaine. I know you feel the same way. Don’t let it be in vain, don’t let your ambitions be unrealized.”

And Slaine was clutching Inaho’s body, looking at Saazbuam in horror, blood everywhere. 

And Inaho was still alive. Barely, but Slaine could feel it. 

“I’ll make it easy for you,” Saazbuam said, and raised his gun. “Come with me, or you both die.”

And it was the only thing Slaine could do to save Inaho and Princess Asseylum. They might both live, if only Slaine could do this. 

“I have finally made up my mind,” Slaine said, bowing before Saazbuam. “Please forgive me for all the wrongs I have done you in the past, and am sure to do in the future. Let’s escape in the Tharsis.”

And Saazbuam smirked and Slaine found himself back on Vers, with Princess Asseylum unconscious in a cryotube.

Slaine is sure Inaho isn’t dead. 

He checks the terran military death records every day. It is a simple enough procedure, and would raise little suspicion if he was discovered. 

And there has never been an Inaho Kaizuka listed. Not for the past 582 days. So Inaho was still alive. 

But that doesn’t mean he is ok. 

Slaine saw the head wound himself. It was bad. The fact that Inaho survived was a miracle in and of itself. 

So while Inaho is alive, he could be in a coma, or paralyzed, or have amnesia, or suffer brain damage, or…

There is an endless list of possibilities. 

Inaho could literally not be able to contact or find Slaine. And Slaine has no idea of what is actually happening.

Inaho could be lying unconscious in a hospital somewhere right now, with Yuki crying over his body. 

This is the image Slaine keeps coming back to. 

So, the brief flashes of anger Slaine feels towards Inaho for leaving him here, for abandoning him, for forgetting him, are quickly replaced with horrid guilt. It’s Slaine’s fault Inaho was shot in the head. It’s Slaine’s fault if Inaho is hurt. How dare Slaine feel resentment towards Inaho when it was Slaine who caused all of this in the first place? When Inaho probably hasn’t contacted him for a genuine reason?

Slaine hates himself. 

He hates himself whenever he pictures Inaho smiling with Inko and Calm and Nina and Yuki, them playing games and laughing, while he is up here suffering. He hates himself for thinking that Inaho would do that, for not trusting Inaho enough. 

It’s his own self-doubt and hatred poisoning his thoughts, he knows. Inaho was the first and only person to ever tell Slaine that they loved him. He had been ignored, and abused, and called worthless his whole life. Slaine had one good thing in his life. And he lost it. 

“Why… I had nothing… he was everything… You took my mother… my father… Princess Asseylum…my family, my home, my happiness… why did you have to take him too?!”

Fate, God, the universe, whatever. It didn’t matter. Whatever it was, it obviously felt Slaine deserved to suffer. 

_And maybe I do._

_After all, I’m the one who caused all of this._

_I just wanted to fix the world! I just wanted to help people! I wanted us to be able to live in peace!_

And maybe Slaine’s situation wouldn’t be so bad if Count Saazbuam actually wanted to break the cycle of hatred. If what Slaine did wasn’t all in vain. 

But Saazbuam was obsessed with revenge. He hid it behind a noble front, gaining followers. But he didn’t make any move towards ending the cycle. His only mission is to defeat earth, and destroy the royal family. He doesn’t care what happens after that.

Despite the lies, the falsities, Slaine still believes in this ideal. He believes in using aldnoah to save lives, not just those of the royal family either, like his father did. His father saved lives, his father helped the people. Helped everyone. That doesn’t make up for his sins in plotting this war, but it does mean his father wasn’t completely evil. His father was doing what he believed was right. Just as Slaine will do.

Slaine believes in sharing earth and its resources with everyone, like Count Saazbuam, he doesn’t think earth should have this rich culture while martians wither away. He believes in ending the tyrannical rule of the royal family. He believes in a future without war, a future where everyone can live together without hatred. 

And Slaine has to fight this battle by himself. He will break the cycle of hatred. He will create a peaceful world, one where he and Inaho can live in, be happy in, where Princess Asseylum can enjoy the true beauty of earth, where she doesn’t have to be burdened by the war anymore.

It seems impossible. He is a terran, untrusted by everyone, thought to be filth. How is he ever supposed to change anything all alone?

Fighting this war is all he has left, it’s all he can do. So he can’t fail. It’s been a slow process. But he’s finally managed to work his way up to a knight. And Count Saazbuam trusts him. 

It’s almost like Slaine has two selves. One is Sir Slaine Troyard, loyal knight to Count Saazbuam. He is very respectful, has easy smiles. 

And the other is the broken Slaine. Left cold and empty from being alone, friendless, on Moon Base for 582 days. Destroyed by guilt and hate and loss. 

“I still love you...” Slaine cries. The pain threatens to tear him apart. He almost wishes he could stop loving Inaho, if it would make this pain go away. “I’m still in love with him…”

Slaine wipes away his tears. He can’t sit here and cry every night. It’s weakness he can’t afford. Yes, he’s all alone in this place, surrounded by enemies. He doesn’t know what happened to Inaho. But that’s all the more reason why he needs to complete his goal. 

Sometimes Slaine wonders what he would have done differently, if he could go back in time. Besides preventing Princess Asseylum and Inaho from getting shot, he honestly doesn’t know if he would change anything. 

If he let Inaho kill Count Saazbuam, or he did it himself, they would still be stuck on earth. They would still be fighting this endless, pointless war, helpless to change anything.

But now Slaine is up here, in a position to help, to fix, things. Even though it’s taken this long, even though it’s slowly destroying him, even though his heart is broken, he can change something. He can try. 

He will finish this war, no matter what, even if it destroys him.

-

Lemrina keeps her face still as Eddelrittuo helps her out of her chair and into bed. It’s embarrassing, not being able to do even simple things by herself. But she’s lived like this her whole life, so the feeling is blunted. 

Still, she doesn’t want to have to depend on anyone. She wants to be able to stand on her own two feet. Do whatever she wants, whenever she wants.

Which is why she puts up with this whole situation that she is in. If she’s going to be used, at least she is going to get something out of it. 

Her whole life, she’s been nothing but a tool. And what’s even more angering is that those using her pretend that they aren’t. They think she has no idea of their true intentions. It’s insulting. It’s tiring. 

Her whole life has been tiring. She’s never been allowed, or able, to do anything like normal people. She’s always been confined by metal walls, surround by empty space, hardly anyone knowing she even exists. So she poured herself into books and videos and information. She’s read and watched all kinds of things, but what interests her most is what is real; what is obtainable.

And her heart settled on Earth. 

It’s not a unique dream, she knows. Especially amongst those on Mars, whose lives are probably just as bad as hers. But she still wants to see the trees and the sky and the ocean and the animals and everything. And she wants to do it without that chair. 

It has always been her dream, and it has always seemed so distant. But now it seems as though things are finally speeding up…

Perhaps because of Slaine Troyard. 

She was originally excited to hear of the story of Slaine Troyard from Count Saazbuam. He didn’t want to tell her, but she managed to convince him, as she always does. 

The terran boy who risked everything to save the martian princess, who worked with the terrans before turning traitor and bringing back a half dead princess and heavily injured Saazbuam to Mars. Slaine shot Saazbuam himself, for shooting the princess, it seems. 

That he would go to such lengths… that he seemed so conflicted in his ideals… he was interesting. 

And then she found out who his father was. 

And she needed to meet him.

It took a while to convince the still healing Count Saazbuam of it. But eventually they met. 

He was nothing but polite, respectful, reserved. The perfect soldier. 

But she saw through this farce immediately. He was pretending. She played along. 

She let him feel pity for her. She played the part of helpless princess. 

‘Tell me about Earth, Slaine!’

He would get a sadness in him as he did. He wasn’t as good as hiding his true feelings back then. Not like now. Especially now that he knew not to trust her.  
She always kept the sneer off of her face when he mentioned her sister, as always. He always talked about her sister. The sister who had everything and still wanted more. So greedy. 

She had to admit, she was a bit jealous that her sister managed to inspire such loyalty, such devotion, in someone like Slaine. 

She began trying to find the chink in his armor. She didn’t need loyalty, she couldn’t rely on loyalty. She needed control. 

But as soon as she began, he completely shut down. He saw right through her. It was impressive, really, how fast he discovered her true nature. Gone was the respectfulness, kindness, pity. She didn’t mind all that much. It never would have lasted long anyway. 

But she just wishes she had managed to find out what really happened to him on Earth. Why he was up here, why he was pretending, why he was so angry. If she could understand him, she can control him, get what she needs from him.

But these days Slaine is colder than ever. He has almost perfected his front now. Lemrina will never get anything out of him willingly. Slaine might think he has her fooled, but he doesn’t. He’s hiding something. 

But there are other ways of getting information. She isn’t done yet.

Slaine of a year ago was much less careful, much less emotionless. It’s been fun, almost like a puzzle, trying to figure out Slaine Troyard. She is honestly thoroughly enjoying herself. It’s been fun, almost like a puzzle, trying to figure out Slaine Troyard. She is honestly thoroughly enjoying herself. At least she has Slaine to thank for that.

‘I used to think that the sky was blue due to diffraction…I told Princess Asseylum that,’ Slaine told her one day. She smiled brightly at him, pretending she didn’t know how stupid that idea was. ‘But… someone… corrected me… it’s actually because of Rayleigh scattering…’

She remembers this conversation now. The raw pain evident in his voice when he told that story. And it wasn’t because of the princess. It’s become obvious that her sister, though important to him, wasn’t the chink as she had originally thought. He is too open when he talks about her. So there was someone else… the someone who corrected him. 

It fits with the pieces she has collected so far. She knows she almost has the full picture. She just needs a little more.

She smiles sweetly at Eddelrittuo. “Will you tell me more about your time on earth?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sorry for the delay, hopefully the next chapter will be up within a week!
> 
> -I'm really excited to start writing season 2! I think it's going be a lot darker and more angsty.
> 
> -Lemrina is one of my favorite characters, so there will probably be a lot of her POV. I like to write her as more manipulative and cunning than as a girl who is in love with Slaine.
> 
> -So, it's been 19 months. I am going to try to follow the chronology of the show pretty closely. Thank you so much for all your comments! I love them, they make my day! :)


	22. Chapter 22

Inaho lowers himself out of his kataphrakt. It really did take a lot more damage than he expected in this fight against the martian kataphrakt with the power to freeze.  


He’ll have to get Calm to fix it fast. He shouldn’t destroy his kat the first battle back…

“Inaho!” he hears Inko yell. He turns around to face her. “Are you alright, Inaho?!”

“Ensign Inaho Kaizuka reporting, per orders from general headquarters. I have been assigned to your ship.”

It wasn’t an accident, but he had to work hard to get assigned back to the Deucalion. It seems that some higher ups fought against it. He suspects Yuki and Captain Magbaredge. But he managed to get around them.

“Come on, what’s with that? You never change, Inaho,” Inko says with a smile.

Rayet is standing next to Inko, in a pilot’s uniform as well. He had heard that she was allowed to join earth’s forces. After all, all those who knew of her attack on Seylum were either on the Deucalion or dead. There was no reason not to use her. He wonders if his talk with Captain Magbaredge so long ago made a difference or not. 

Either way, it was obviously the correct choice. She appears mentally stable, Inaho notes. 

The Deucalion crew has been fighting in this war for almost two years now. Most of that without him. It seems as though Inko and Rayet are friends once again, which means Calm and Nina must be included in that group. They make a formidable team. 

And even though it’s been over a year since Inaho has seen any of them, he doesn’t think they will be much different. How much can someone change in a year? He should start recording data on that…

“Back at you, Inko. I’m glad you’re looking well,” Inaho says.

“You have changed. Quite a bit,” Rayet says. Inaho turns to her in surprise. “You can make polite small talk now.”

Inaho frowns. “That’s not really a compliment.”

He wants to say something more, but Inko runs and envelops him in a tight hug before he can. “Welcome back… welcome back, Inaho.”

He can detect the tears in her voice. He doesn’t know what to do in this situation. He looks over Inko’s shoulder to Rayet for help. But she just smirks and shrugs. 

“It’s good to be back,” Inaho says.

Apparently that was the right thing to say, because Inko releases him. 

She gives him another quick smile before looking him hard in the eyes. He senses danger. 

“Are you really ok, Inaho?”

He knows what she is referring to. And there is no simple answer. 

This was the first time he was allowed back in battle for 19 months. The first time he was able to be in battle in 19 months. 

He had been in a coma for 5 months, before finally waking up, Yuki told him. They hadn’t known if he would ever wake up. 

But he had. And he had lost 5 months. And in those 5 months, he had lost much more than just time. His muscles has deteriorated from lack of movement and proper diet. His whole body was damaged from the wound to his head. He couldn’t even stand. 

And there was gauze wrapped tightly around his head, obscuring his left side in particular. He couldn’t see through the bandages. But he knew that even if they were gone, he wouldn’t be able to see anything from that side anyway. 

It took another month before Inaho was able to stand. And another before he was strong enough to walk around without assistance. 

He hadn’t anticipated the trouble that would come from not being able to see. The lack of depth perception, constantly reaching for something and missing, bumping into things, lack of peripheral vision, the frustration, it all hindered his progress. 

He knew he couldn’t do anything like this. He could never go back to battle with one eye. He could never shoot a gun accurately, never pilot a kat, never do what he needed to do. 

So he petitioned to be the trial subject for the new procedure he found online. It was a prototype, it was risky, but he needed it. 

Yuki objected, of course. And the doctors seemed reluctant to do such a procedure on a teenager. But the war kept raging, and not in their favor, so after another long month, he convinced them. It was the logical choice after all. 

The operation took place, and he was back in bed for another month. His whole left face throbbed. 

And finally, he could really begin his rehab. Now he could retrain his body, as well as adjust to his new left eye, at the same time. It was efficient.

But not efficient enough. 

His body had been put under an enormous amount of strain and trauma in such a short time. It was bound to be difficult, even without a new eye to deal with. 

But he hadn’t expected it to take 10 months. 

10 months before he was back to the condition he was in before he was shot. 10 months of painfully slow progress. 10 months of anger and frustration. He knew even Yuki was getting tired of his attitude whenever he failed to achieve something. 

‘You’re pushing yourself too hard, Nao,’ she would say worriedly, when Inaho would fall to the ground after trying for the third time to complete his goal. And Inaho would ignore her, and leave the room, slamming the door behind him. 

It was unlike him, he knew. But he had also never been in a situation like this before. He had never wanted something that he was physically unable to do. He never needed time to do something so badly before. He had never needed time to stop, or speed up, before. It was taking too long, it wasn’t happening fast enough.

It took 19 months. 

19 months before he was deemed fit and cleared to go back to battle. 19 months before he was able to be back here on the Deucalion with Inko and everyone again.

19 months without Slaine. 

He couldn’t get back to Slaine for 19 months. 

He left Slaine alone for 19 months. 

When he promised Slaine that he would find him, he never thought it would take almost 2 years. He never thought he could hate the flow of time so much. 

He wasn’t allowed any contact with anyone from the Deucalion, save Yuki. And he wasn’t allowed any critical information on the war. All he could gather was from sources on the internet. Highly unreliable. 

What has Slaine been doing all this time? Is Slaine ok? What does Slaine think of Inaho’s absence?

He asks these questions every day, but even his analytical engine can’t answer them. 

But now he’s finally managed to get back where he needs to be. He can finally find Slaine. 

But it’s been so long. Almost 2 years. 

What has happened in that time? What has happened to Slaine?

Inaho purposefully doesn’t think about the darkness in Slaine. He chooses to believe that Slaine is fine, that Slaine is the same, has been waiting for him. 

But he needs to know what has been going on with the war… if anyone has heard of Slaine. 

“What’s happened, Inko?” Inaho asks. 

She sighs. “I’ll tell you on the ship.”

-

Captain Magbaredge sighs. It seems like she’s been doing that a lot lately. The Deucalion is leaving the atmosphere now, heading to Trident Base. 

At least she has a strong fighting force. The kids have shaped up well. Especially Rayet. Captain Magbaredge is confident at least that she made the right decision there. She conveniently neglected to inform anyone of Rayet’s crime. Besides, there weren’t many people left to inform. It would be a trivial matter, compared to the ongoing war. They wouldn’t have time to deal with it. And they needed her to fight. There was no question on what to do. 

And Rayet is a great soldier. A little cheeky, but that can be overlooked. And she seems to have fallen in with Inko and Nina very well. She still holds her extreme hatred for martians, but at least she seems happier, more stable.

Captain Magbaredge wonders if she herself will ever be able to fully rid herself of the hatred inside of her… maybe if Rayet can do it, she can too.

It almost feels like old times, having everyone back on the ship. It’s not like old times though, she knows. She thought it was bad back then, but it’s much worse now.

The war hasn’t been going great. They’ve barely managed to keep the feeble resistance that they have. 

And it appears as though the princess switched sides, and is rallying the martians against Earth. 

And now Inaho is back. 

Which is a good thing, in theory. They need him. 

But still, she fought hard to not permit him back in battle. Especially not on the Deucalion. 

But he managed to get back here anyway. She was silly for ever thinking she could keep him away. Especially when Slaine is still out there somewhere. 

They hadn’t known if Inaho would ever awake from his comatose state, and when he did, she got frequent updates on all of his progress. She heard about his analytical eye. She was angry at him for doing something so foolish, but she knew why he did it. And it was then that she knew he was going to come back, one way or another. 

And it was going to cause trouble for her, and everyone else. 

But she supposes that it doesn’t really matter. They are in enough trouble as it is, it can’t get much worse. They are all going to die in this war, anyway, without Inaho. So she has grudgingly accepted the trouble that he will bring with him, as long as he can help them win this war. 

The real problem is that there has been no news of Slaine Troyard. No one knows what happned to him after he took the princess to Vers.

She grimaces as she remembers the body of the women shot up so long ago, and the anger and self-hatred in Slaine’s eyes when Inaho was dying. 

She wondered why Slaine never found his way back here, looking for Inaho. It seemed out of character…

What is Slaine doing right now…?

Well, Inaho is sure to figure that out. Especially with his new eye. But she’s not sure he’s going to like the answer.

-

Lemrina keeps her face serious but kind as she speaks into the microphone. “…The terrans who so foolishly squandered the goodwill of the Vers empire are even now bidding their time to attempt to steal our lands from us. The Vers empire must exterminate them out of mercy. We shall take the blue earth for Vers. Let us liberate this world, which possesses air and water in such quantities that is diffracts light and makes the sky and seas appear blue.” 

She looks at Slaine out of the corner of her eye, not breaking character. She is pleased to see his mouth open a little in surprise, or horror, or both. It might be the first real emotion she’s gotten out of him in months. She smirks as the camera shuts down. So she was right. She wants to laugh at the look on Slaine’s face. 

“Water please, Eddelrittuo,” She says instead.

“How was that, Count Saazbuam?” She asks brightly.

“Excellent. You were the very image of Princess Asseylum,” He says, as though that’s a compliment. “No one would ever suspect your true identity.”

Slaine has his simple, calm, smile back, she notes. 

“This is the problem with you men,” She says, releasing the hologram. “No one was speaking of true identities.”

Everything she had said was true. The terrans were almost as greedy as her sister. Once they defeat them, earth will finally be within her grasp. 

“Masterfully done, Princess Lemrina,” Slaine says, she joyfully notes a slight edge in his voice. “Your majestic words are sure to have left an impression on the orbital knights as well.”

“Thank you, Sir Slaine Troyard,” she says with a bright smile that she knows will infuriate him more. She can see he has no idea why she would say what she did. “I am more grateful for such concern than any compliments on my performance. I hope anyone who was watching will be affected by my words.”

Slaine almost lets his smile drop at that. “I’m sure they will be.”

“It’s all thanks to you, for teaching me so much about earth, that I can do this!”

“…I am humbled and delighted to help you, princess.”

There was no reason to rub salt in the wound. She had what she wanted. But it was fun to do it anyway. “Thank you, Slaine.”

-

“It’s wrong…” Inaho mutters to himself, as he watches Princess Asseylum’s speech. The Deucalion has left Earth’s atmosphere and is heading to Trident Base.

“Huh?” Inko says. 

“It’s Rayleigh scattering that makes the sky blue,” he says. 

“Oh…ok…” Inko says. She doesn’t get it. 

He told Seylum that is was Rayleigh scattering. She should have known. 

It appears as though Princess Asseylum is alive, and back in power on Vers. Apparently she reappeared a few months after the incident. But she seems to have changed. She seems deadest on this war with Earth now. Inko and Nina are confused by it, but they haven’t put too much thought into it. 

If Seylum is alive, that must mean Slaine is too.

So why would Seylum say the blue sky is caused by diffraction, when both her and Slaine know differently. 

Is it a message from Slaine? Inaho wants to believe that it is. He’s so desperate for any indication that Slaine is alive and well. But he also doesn’t want to believe it. Because that means that Slaine is working with Seylum. That Slaine supports what she is doing. That Slaine has a hand in this change, this all out assault on earth. 

He wants to believe that Slaine is happy. That Seylum survived and was there for Slaine. That Slaine has been ok, and waiting for Inaho. That his friendship with Seylum would pull him through any trouble he had on Vers. 

But this Seylum was different. And if Slaine was a part of this, then Slaine was different too. Inaho doesn’t know what to think. 

He tried to analyze the speech patterns of the speech, especially the part on diffraction. He picked up a slight irregularity, but it wasn’t the same as when people usually lie. 

However, he hasn’t had much practice with his engine yet. And it’s not like people go out of their way to lie to him. Most of his examples are from Yuki, telling him that she’s fine and that the war isn’t that bad and that they don’t need Inaho anymore.

But Yuki is very easy to read. He would have known she was lying even without the eye. 

Seylum should also be easy to read, with her personality. 

But the Seylum on the telescreen was not. It was like he was trying to read a very skilled liar, someone with a lot of experience lying. 

And Seylum doesn’t have that.

It’s wrong, and Inaho doesn’t really know why yet. 

But whatever it is, he feels that it has to do with Slaine. It all comes back to Slaine.

As much as Inaho doesn’t want to admit it, Slaine has a hand in what is happening with Vers right now. 

-

Slaine is sitting in a room, teaching Princess Asseylum about earth. Except the facts in the book keep changing. He tells her one thing, and then that information suddenly is wrong. But she just happily soaks it up, and Slaine can’t seem to correct himself. 

She says something and Slaine looks up from the book. 

It’s not Princess Asseylum anymore. 

Instead, Count Cruhteo stands above Slaine, holding his cane above his head, ready to strike. 

The book in Slaine’s hand turns into a gun. 

He shoots Count Cruhteo in the head.

Cruhteo falls to the floor, blood pooling out from his head. 

Slaine tries to step back, away from the spreading redness. But it’s growing too fast, surrounding him. 

He stumbles backwards, and he’s sinking into a pool of water that appeared. 

He sinks and sinks, he tries to swim his way to the top, but he can’t make himself move upwards. 

Bubbles escape his mouth and he can’t breathe. 

A figure stands above the pool, looking down at Slaine. 

At first it seems like it’s Count Saazbuam, but the water clears, and Slaine can see that it is Inaho. 

More bubbles escape as Slaine yells for Inaho to help him. 

Slaine struggles to swim, but he just sinks further into the darkness. 

Inaho makes no move to help him, content with watching Slaine drown. 

Slaine stares at Inaho’s emotionless face for as long as he can, before he runs out of bubbles and light.

-

The best part of the day is the moment Slaine wakes up. 

And he can almost believe that everything was just a bad dream. 

He can almost believe that Inaho is next to him. 

He can almost believe that he will wake up next to Inaho. He can complain about Inaho’s cold feet and they can go eat breakfast together.

Those few seconds of disorientation, where his eyes are not yet open, and his brain hasn’t quite caught up. 

Those are the best moments of Slaine’s every day. 

And then come the worst moments. When he realizes that it wasn’t all a nightmare. That Inaho is a thousand miles away, never coming for him. When he remembers everything he lost. 

And then the pain is worse, when the details of whatever that night’s nightmare was flood into his mind. 

They usually feature Inaho in some way. And Slaine would love to see Inaho, even just in his dreams, if it wasn’t for the way that Inaho was never a comforting figure in his dreams. 

In some he would yell and yell, trying to get Inaho to talk to him. But Inaho would never turn around.

In others, Inaho would finally look at him, but it was only when Slaine was being taken away by something. And all he would do is watch. 

The fading dreams of Inaho’s face were a familiar ache in Slaine’s chest. The dreams can’t hurt that much when he wakes to something worse. Inaho is letting him drown. Inaho left him to descend into darkness. 

The key is to not think about it. 

The key is to not think about Inaho. 

The key is to not think about anything. 

-

Inaho is surrounded by trees. He doesn’t know where he is. But he faintly, in the back of his mind, knows that this is a dream. But he’s not lucid enough to do anything. He is subject to the whims of the dream. 

Inaho walks through the forest. It’s hard to tell what season it is. As he walks, the trees shift. In some sections, it’s winter, in other’s it’s fall. He walks further. He has a goal, he just can’t place what it is. 

He comes to a section of the forest, and it’s the forest that Slaine shot that woman in, two years ago. 

Inaho can’t see very well. His left eye is open, but he can’t see anything from it. But Inaho isn’t worried. It feels natural that he can’t use that eye. And that he can’t move very well. 

_I need to find Slaine._

Slaine is here somewhere. Inaho knows it. 

He follows the trail of bodies on the floor. He will find Slaine at the end of it. 

It’s slow work, but he finally makes it to the end. 

A blonde figure stands at the edge of the forest. 

There is nothing after the forest ends. Just black. 

“Slaine.”

Slaine turns around and looks at Inaho. His face is blurry. And Inaho can only see out of one eye. But it’s Slaine. 

Inaho struggles to make his body move towards Slaine, but it seems to have gotten worse. 

The black starts creeping forwards, swallowing trees. 

Inaho doesn’t want to get swallowed by the black, and he doesn’t want Slaine to either. 

“Slaine, come here.”

Slaine shakes his head. “I can’t.”

Inaho moves his body. If he can reach Slaine, if he can just kiss Slaine, they will be safe, he knows. 

Slaine watches him sadly as Inaho tries to move closer to the blackness. He’s too slow. The black is nipping at Slaine’s ankles. If Inaho keeps moving, he will get eaten too. But he can’t stop. 

The black runs up Slaine’s back, and Inaho is still too far away. Inaho desperately reaches out to Slaine. Slaine’s hand meets him, and he pulls Inaho into his arms, just as the blackness tumbles over them. 

But it’s not really a threat anymore. Inaho doesn’t care that they are surrounded by nothing as he looks up at Slaine. Blood pours from Inaho’s eye.

He presses his lips to Slaine’s, as the darkness swirls around them, unceasing. 

-

Inaho wakes up and his left eye is pounding. Weird. He covers it with his hand, and it feels slightly better. 

Inaho has been able to remember his dreams a lot better since he got the analytical engine. 

Dreams are merely the brain firing signals as it organizes thoughts and experiences that may end up as memory. They also organize random stimuli, trying to make sense of them. 

But Inaho likes these dreams anyway. If he tried to explain his dreams to someone, they might call it a nightmare. They wouldn’t think it was pleasant, anyway. But to Inaho, he’s happy as long as he ends up in Slaine’s arms. 

They may be meaningless, but they’re the only place where Inaho can be with Slaine right now. 

-

The Deucalion has docked at Trident Base. Inaho knows he must be closer to Slaine now than he has been in 19 months. 

Slaine’s up here. 

Inaho replays Seylum’s speech again. He has multiple analyses running on it. There’s something wrong with it. 

Well, there’s multiple things wrong with it. But he doesn’t know what pertains to Slaine and what doesn’t.

There’s a knock at the door. “Ensign Kaizuka, are you in?”

“It’s open.”

The door slides open and Inko stands on the other side. She floats into the room. “How are you feeling, Inaho?”

Inaho takes off his eye cover and earphone. He puts it away in the harness around his shoulder. “Not bad, I guess. It still hurts a little, though,” Inaho says truthfully. It was a lot more painful in the beginning. He could barely function, let alone use his analytical engine. So he can’t complain about a little discomfort now. 

“Don’t you have pills?” Inko asks. 

“I feel better when I take them, but it degrades the sensitivity of the neural link.”

And there’s no point in having this eye if he can’t use it. If he can’t find Slaine. 

“Oh that makes sense…It must be rough,” Inko says, and gets really close to Inaho’s face. Inaho looks up in surprise. Inko frowns. “It looks like an ordinary eye to me. How well does it work?”

“I get by with it. It’s a developmental prototype so the code needs to be improved. But I can make out most things,” Inaho tosses Inko a bag of juice. “Catch.”

Inko smiles and catches the floating pouch. “Thanks!”

“Weight: 49.2kg. Have you gained a little weight?”

“How could you know that?!” Inko demands, red.

“I used 3D measurements to calculate the change in momentum when you caught that 200g pack and worked out your total mass. I subtracted the estimated weight of your uniform from that.”

“I’m not getting fat! I just have more muscle mass from exercising is all!”

“That’s a lie. I can see the stress patterns in the format analysis of your voice.”

“Are you sure it’s not broken?”

“It’s working perfectly.”

Inko bends over to look at his computer. “Now what?”

“I can see identical stress patterns in her voice,” Inaho says, gesturing to Princess Asseylum on the screen. “Especially here.” 

He plays the part of her saying ‘I, Vers Empire Princess Royal Asseylum Vers Allusia’ for the fifth time. It’s definitely registering as a lie. 

“Hang on! If that’s a lie, it means…She isn’t really the princess!”

“This part’s waveform is definitely a lie. Have you been stress eating?”

“I haven’t been stress eating!”

“Your stress levels went up again”

“I’m not talking to you ever again!!!” Inko yells, and storms out of the room. That statement was a lie. 

Rayet appears in the open doorway. She watches Inko run off. “Something wrong?”

“Not really. I thought it would be easy to read Inko,” Inaho says, and continues analysis on the speech. Inko was good practice. He needs to get a lot more accustomed to using his eye if it’s going to be much of a help. 

“That settles it,” Rayet says. “You really are an idiot.”

Inaho’s heart clinches a little at the reminder of Slaine. No one has called him an idiot in 19 months. 

He covers his right eye to get a better reading on Rayet. “You’re telling the truth.”

“Don’t analyze me with that eye. It’s creepy,” Rayet mutters and then smirks. “You’re still the same as I remember.”

“You said I changed.”

Rayet shrugs. “In some ways. It’s hard to tell exactly what. But you’re still an emotionless idiot to me. Pretty boring to be around. Don’t care about anything,” She pauses. “But I think there are others that would tell me I’m wrong,” She gives him a meaningful look. 

Inaho decides not to be offended by her words. Or be baited into the conversation he knows she wants to have. This time he shrugs. “I don’t care what people think.”

“I know you at least care what one person thinks. Or you wouldn’t be back here.”

“I’m back here because this is war and we have to fight to survive.”

She snorts. “Sure. You could just as easily fought from Earth, feeding us instructions and strategies instead of here fighting. You could have started helping months ago if you hadn’t insisted on getting that eye. Instead you wasted time in order to get back out here, when you could have been helping us win. I know you well enough to know that you weighed your options. And this one won out. There is no logic behind you being out here except for the fact that you want to. And you want to because-”

“What’s your point?” Inaho asks bluntly. He knows what her point is. 

“You’re here because of Slaine.”

Emotion fills Inaho. It’s the first time he has heard someone say that name in months. No one ever wants to mention him around Inaho. No one wanted to talk about Slaine. 

“Yes.”

“How do you know he’s even up here?”

“I know.”

“He’s probably changed. Like you have.”

“People grow up. It doesn’t mean he’s different. You even said that I’m still the same even though I’ve changed.”

“He’s different. He’s been living with martians for almost two years,” Rayet sneers. 

“That doesn’t matter.”

“Something weird is going on up there.”

“I know.”

“It probably has to do with Slaine.”

“I know.”

“You left him. Why do you think he would even want to see you? It’s been two years, why do you think he still cares?”

“I don’t. I just need to make sure he’s ok. And if he never wants to see me again that’s fine.”

Rayet shrugs again. “Well, if you’re prepared to be disappointed or heartbroken or betrayed it’s none of my business. Just don’t put the rest of us in danger,” she glares at him as she leaves the room. “I still can’t believe Inaho Kaizuka fell in love,” she mutters and is gone. 

Inaho shuts his computer and gets up. He walks to the loading bay as he thinks about what Rayet said. 

He’s prepared for Slaine to be mad at him. He can handle that.

He can probably deal with it if Slaine doesn’t care about Inaho anymore. As long as Slaine is happy. 

But if he has to fight Slaine… if Slaine is against them now… Inaho doesn’t think anything could prepare him for that. 

If only he had been allowed information of the war during his time… if only he had been able to contact Slaine. 

If only he had never let Slaine go all those months ago…

Inaho stops and looks up at his orange kataphrakt. 

Orange. 

It holds so many memories. Slaine’s nickname for him. How Slaine found him in the first place. Hoping it would let Slaine always find him. 

His promise to Slaine. 

He places a hand on the orange metal.

He needs to find Slaine. Now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -This chapter has most of the elements of the first episode of season 2 in it, so I'm officially working with the source material! 
> 
> -I will probably explore Inaho's time in rehab a bit more. The time tables are completely made up, since I don't think there's any real information on what happened during those 19 months. But I will be consistent with them. 
> 
> -The next few chapters are where things get really interesting, so yay! 
> 
> -Thanks as always for reading and commenting!! :)


	23. Chapter 23

“I love this place,” Princess Lemrina says, jumping off the ground, her chair left behind. “I can walk on my own two feet here!” The low gravity in select rooms allows Princess Lemrina to use her deteriorated muscles as much as possible.

Slaine smiles. It’s not as forced or fake as usual. Princess Lemrina is genuinely happy right now. She isn’t trying to do anything besides enjoy life. Right now, she kind of reminds Slaine of Princess Asseylum. So he can not completely hate floating through the air with her. 

She giggles as she keeps jumping, and Slaine feels not horrible. But then they fly past the racks upon racks of kataphrakts. Slaine’s smile drops off quickly.  
He isn’t here to enjoy his time; especially not with someone like Princess Lemrina. He is here to end this war, once and for all. He is here to save Inaho, and Princess Asseylum, by finally ending the cycle of hatred. 

Lemrina lands in a kataphrakt. “I command you in the name of royal Versian blood! Aldnoah, awaken!” She says, and the racks begin to light up. 

Slaine looks at all the kataphrakt and steels his heart. He knows what he has to fight for. 

-

Slaine sits on his bed, looking at the book Inko gave him for the millionth time. It seems like forever ago that he and Inaho did all of this stuff Inko wrote. It seems like a completely different universe. 

Even though they were fighting a war, they somehow still managed to throw a party, have food fights, play games… he thought they were in a bad situation back then, but now that time seems so easy and happy. 

Back then he didn’t know why he would want this book, full of embarrassment and Inko’s stalking (he misses Inko when he reads this book as well). But now, it’s his most precious possession. It’s his only proof that the time he spent on the Deucalion was real. 

But that time is gone now. It can never come back. 

Slaine flips the page and looks at the picture Inko had attached. Slaine can’t place exactly what was happening when it was taken. In the picture, Inaho is standing next to Slaine, looking as expressionless as Slaine remembers. But he takes in the brown hair, the red eyes, the uniform, the nose, the lips. Everything. 

He remembers how he could once touch Inaho’s face. How he could kiss Inaho’s mouth. He stares and stares, he can’t get enough.

He wonders if he would have forgotten Inaho’s face by now if he hadn’t had this picture? He wants to think that he wouldn’t have, but everyone else’s faces have blurred into generic features. 

But he doesn’t want a generic Inaho. He wants to remember exactly how his hair falls, how his eyebrows look, how his lips taste. 

And all he has is this picture. It’s not enough. 

Slaine accidentally glances over at himself in the picture. He hates it. He has debated covering that half, but he is too afraid of ruining the picture. 

Slaine’s face is red, which suggests that the situation is something he wouldn’t have wanted a picture taken off. But that doesn’t give him many clues, considering how many embarrassing situations Inaho got him into. 

His face looks younger. 

Slaine glances up to the mirror that sits across the room. He scowls and quickly looks away. 

His eyes look dead, even to himself. He can see the difference so much better after looking at the picture. Even though he is obviously embarrassed in the photo, Slaine’s eyes still look happy. Alive. 

Those were the happiest days of his life. 

The scowling Slaine in the mirror looks nothing like the Slaine in the photo, glancing at Inaho with so much emotion in his eyes. 

Slaine hates both images. 

Would Inaho even recognize him now?

Slaine closes the half empty book. 

It should have been full. 

It should be full of their memories together. 

Slaine thinks back to his and Inaho’s last day together. 

They never got to finish their date. 

Slaine never got to hear the end of Inaho’s story. 

He spent their last moments together napping. 

There are so many words he never said. There is so much he wants to tell Inaho. 

_I’m sorry._

He wants to tell Inaho’s he’s sorry so much.

He’s sorry for leaving. He’s sorry for ruining everything. He’s sorry for hurting Inaho. He’s sorry for everything he did. He’s sorry for everything he’s doing. He’s sorry for everything he is going to do.

He hates himself. The regret is a part of him by now.

Back then, he knew their fragile peace wouldn’t last forever. He knew something bad was coming. He knew it would be hard. In the back of his mind, he was always preparing for their happiness to come to an end.

But he thought he would have Inaho with him. He thought that they would walk this path together. He thought Inaho would be beside him. He could face anything, as long as he had Inaho.

He never thought he would have to do this alone. He never thought that Inaho would be gone. He wasn’t prepared for this. 

Why does it seem so hard to live, to breath, to do anything, without Inaho? Why does it still have to hurt so much, even after all this time?

The shards of a broken promise are constantly stabbing his heart. Inaho isn’t coming for him. 

Except now the Deucalion’s been spotted. And it’s here. And it’s making Slaine crazy. There’s no way that the same crew is on the same ship after almost two years. There’s no way they would continue to let teenagers be the main crew for all this time. There’s no way Inaho is on that ship. 

If Inaho was on the Deucalion, then why hadn’t he contacted Slaine? 

He’s not there. None of them are there. 

He half wants to believe it, half doesn’t. 

Part of him wants to think that Inaho has finally found him. 

And the other part doesn’t want Inaho anywhere near that ship, or him. He doesn’t want Inaho to see him like this. He doesn’t want Inaho to know what he’s going to do. 

But he still wants Inaho. He still wants to see Inaho. He still wants Inaho to keep his promise. He still wants Inaho to be on that ship. 

But he might have to fight the Deucalion. 

He clutches the book, a couple tears falling onto the cover, joining the hundreds others that already soaked in.

It will be like destroying a part of himself. A part that he still likes. His past, what should have been his future…

-

Slaine walks up to Count Saazbuam as the screen communicating with the emperor shuts down. 

The emperor looks close to death, despite what image is broadcast to the rest of the world. 

Saazbuam sighs. “I once lied to him that she had been assassinated, and now I am lying to him that she is alive…Slaine, what is your opinion of Vers as it is now?”

“It is not my place to offer an opinion on our sacred homeland.”

“It is alright. You may speak freely.”

“I believe it is possible for our society, with its powerless, impoverished citizenry, to become prosperous by conquering earth, making it a domain and taking its resources. However… that wealth is likely to only find its way to the upper class, and will not improve the lives of the citizens at all.”

“What is your suggestion, then?”

Slaine hesitates. “Aldnoah…Those who possess aldnoah control everything. That is the problem.”

“Well put. We owe much to his imperial majesty for unearthing aldnoah. But it was a grave sin to hoard that power and create a society where the powerful control all. When we have achieved victory and seized earth, that red world will change. Lend me your strength, Slaine.”

“I will, Count Saazbuam.”

-

Slaine floats down the hallway, letting the lack of gravity do the work of walking for him. 

He thinks about his conversation with Count Saazbuam. 

He told Saazbuam what Slaine knew he would want to hear. Count Saazbuam hates earth, and hates the royal family. 

But what Slaine said wasn’t completely untrue to himself. Vers does need Earth’s resources to survive, and earth isn’t going to give them freely. The war will continue forever as long as Earth harbors all that Vers wants. Also, the royal family cannot keep holding aldnoah’s power all for themselves, letting innocents die. 

He knows he’s doing the right thing. Even if the way he’s doing it isn’t the easiest, it’s all necessary. He is the only one who seems to be willing to try to change anything…Slaine refuses to be helpless to save anyone ever again. He’s fighting a war to end war. He’s killing to end killing. He’s doing everything he hates for a hope of success. 

There is so much wrong with the world… how is he supposed to fix it by himself?

Slaine is lost in thought as he turns the corner. 

But not so lost in thought that he doesn’t notice the figure standing down the hall. 

Slaine stops his floating body, which is difficult when he was moving pretty rapidly. He skids against the floor, staring in disbelief at Inaho in front of him. 

Slaine’s thoughts aren’t processing, he tries to say something but all that comes out is a mix between a cough and a choke. 

Before Slaine can react, Inaho floats to him and has his arms wrapped around Slaine. 

“Inaho…?” Slaine manages to choke out. 

The moment Slaine opens his mouth, Inaho’s lips are on his.

Slaine struggles to keep his mind clear. But he can’t when he’s kissing Inaho, when he can feel Inaho’s mouth. 

But something is wrong. 

Slaine doesn’t want to think. He doesn’t want to feel. He just wants to stand here and kiss Inaho forever. He doesn’t want to stop, he doesn’t want to figure out what is wrong. 

Wrong. 

Inaho kisses him harder. 

Wrong. 

Let it happen. He can’t give this up. He’s not strong enough. 

But it’s wrong. 

Slaine shoves Inaho off of him. 

Slaine tries to steady his breathing and clear his mind. 

Inaho looks at him with a very un-emotionless gaze. 

“Stop it!!” Slaine yells. 

Inaho just looks at him. 

“I know it’s you, Princess Lemrina!” 

Now Inaho smiles. It’s a vicious smile that does not belong on Inaho’s face. “Took you long enough to figure it out.”

Slaine feels a new but familiar pang of guilt. He knew it wasn’t really Inaho and he let Lemrina kiss him anyways. Because it was Inaho’s body. Because it felt like Inaho. 

And still, with Lemrina standing in front of him, still looking exactly like Inaho, Slaine feels like he’s being tortured. 

Which is probably the point. 

“Stop! Don’t you dare look like him!”

“Why?” Lemrina-as-Inaho floats closer to Slaine, a wicked smirk on his face. Slaine frantically backs away, making Inaho’s smile grow wider. “Don’t you like it?” Inaho says seductively. 

“No!”

Lemrina runs her fingers through Inaho’s hair. Slaine itches to do the same. 

She looks down at Inaho’s body, and back up and Slaine. “He’s not bad looking. I can see why you might like him.”

Slaine can’t drag his eyes away as Lemrina touches Inaho’s chest and stomach. “Eddelrittuo is surpringly loyal to you. Surprising, considering how much she hates terrans,” Inaho says thoughtfully. “But she is only 14. Combined with the information you yourself gave me, I had enough to figure it out,” Inaho laughs gleefully. “I didn’t exactly know what to do with the knowledge, but then I found your picture…”

Slaine takes a step back. 

“I thought you would rather kiss me if I looked like this,” Lemrina says. 

“What…?!” Slaine chokes out. 

“I deactivated your Tharsis’s aldnoah drive. And I’m the only one who can give you activation powers… unless you want to go ask my sister,” Inaho smirks. “Even though we share a father, no one pays me any heed simply because we have different mothers.”

Slaine doesn’t know how to respond, with Inaho looking like that. 

Inaho’s eyes become angry. “It’s not me anyone admires or cares about. It’s my activation factor,” Inaho turns his heated eyes to Slaine. “Isn’t that the reason you are using me?” Lemrina smiles and leans closer. “You can have as much activation rights as you want, and you can kiss him. Isn’t that what you want? ”

Slaine is silent. 

"It always struck me as odd," Lemrina/Inaho says. "How could a terran like you operate the Tharsis?" Inaho smirks. "I'm sure my sister would be happy to know you still care about her despite her condition. And I'm sure this boy would be happy to know you still love him, too. Even though I have this great activation factor, no one cares about me."

"That's not true-"

"Liar!" She yells, but her (Inaho's) smile comes right back. Inaho twirls around. "Do you want him that badly, Slaine? How badly do you want aldnoah? Am I his replacement? Am I my sister's replacement?"

Slaine doesn't say anything. 

"I hate you," Inaho says with a smile. Even though Slaine knows it's not Inaho, even though the vicious smile doesn't even look like Inaho's, the words cut deep. How many times had he pictured Inaho telling him that, after seeing Slaine now? After Slaine practically got Inaho killed? Inaho should hate him. And this was like every nightmare Slaine had come to life. 

Slaine doesn't know how to stop this. He yanks his jacket off in anger, and turns his back to face Lemrina. "I was born on Earth," Slaine says harshly. "When my father died, I lost my one protector. I became a servant of the Vers Orbital Knights," Slaine puts his jacket back on and turns to face a stunned Inaho. "I will not pretend to understand your hardships, but I too have faced cruel treatment because of my birth! You have no right to judge me! I am not them! I had one happy thing in my life! You have no right to do this to me!" Slaine struggles not to let tears slip down his face.

Inaho’s face is so close. Slaine is shaking, he wants to kiss Inaho so bad. He wants to fall into Inaho's arms and stay there forever. He puts his hands to Inaho’s chest. They only linger a second before he firmly pushes him away. “Stop…”

Inaho shrugs. “Fine.”

Lemrina releases the hologram, and she stands in the spot that Inaho did a second ago. 

Slaine is torn between relief and distress. He wants her to look like Inaho again. He just wants to look at Inaho. 

It’s like a wound that was never really healed, just partially covered, has been ripped wide open, bigger, and more painful than it was before. 

Slaine’s heart hurts so much, he doesn’t know what he’s going to do now. 

“I’m not your enemy, Slaine,” Lemrina says. 

Slaine looks at her in disbelief. 

“We want to same things. I just want to go to earth, walk on my own two feet, be free of my heritage. I wasn’t sure what your goal really was. But you want peace, you want to save my sister, and you want to be with him. Our goals align.”

Slaine growls. Lemrina smiles sweetly. 

She’s found out the way to hurt him, control him. But Slaine can’t bring himself to hate her. Not when she’s just trying to fulfill her own hopes and dreams. This was a truce offering, in Lemrina’s own way. 

“Fine,” Slaine says coldly. He will work with her, but that doesn’t change anything. She’s going to be just as manipulative as ever, Slaine knows. He won’t let it get to him.

“Thank you, Slaine. You should have activation rights now. I’d be shocked if you didn’t after that,” Lemrina says pleasantly with a wink. She floats away, and Slaine stares after her, remembering Inaho standing before him just a few minutes ago. He slumps against the wall, head in hands. He doesn’t know if he’ll ever be able to move again. 

He’s never going to see Inaho again. Inaho is gone. Seeing Lemrina as Inaho is as close as he’s ever going to get to seeing Inaho. 

But he doesn’t want it like that. 

-

Inaho twists Slaine’s pendant around in his hand. It’s cold, it’s hard, and it’s nothing. It’s a piece of metal. It’s not good luck. It’s not useful. It’s not worth anything.  
Except it is. Because it was Slaine’s. Because it once hung around Slaine’s neck. Because Slaine gave it to him. 

Inaho sighs. It still doesn’t make any sense. But he’s pretty much gotten used to that by now. He’s accepted that love is senseless. Inconvenient. Painful. 

He’s going to see Slaine again, he knows. He’s going to finally find Slaine. That goodbye on earth 19 months ago wasn’t their last. Their story isn’t over yet. Inaho won’t let it be.

Trident Base is going to pass within 7 kilometers of Marineros Base, the Martian equivalent. That is the whole reason they are up here. There’s going to be a battle. Inaho (and his eye) are 96.4% sure of that. 

Is Slaine on that base? Is Slaine going to be fighting? 19 months ago he would have predicted no: Slaine wouldn’t turn against Earth. But now, with everything happening on Mars, Inaho isn’t so sure. It seems more likely that Slaine will be fighting in this battle. 

Rayet’s words come back to Inaho. 

Can he even trust Slaine anymore? Has Slaine turned against them?

It doesn’t change anything. 

Inaho tucks the pendant back into his shirt, where it has lain for the past 19 months. 

-

Lemrina unhappily recalls her conversation with her grandfather. 

“Not only have you survived, you have assumed command of our world,” he said. “I am most impressed. I am proud of you Asseylum.” 

He looked healthy, young. It was all a lie. “Thank you, grandfather,” she replied sweetly. 

“You seem to have grown stronger.”

_That’s because my sister is weak. I am not._

“I have been through much. People tend to change as they gain experience.”

“From the red sands of our home, I pray for your success in battle,” her grandfather said, and ended the call. 

“You never change at all, grandfather,” Lemrina muttered bitterly as she let her own lie dissolve. 

Now, sitting back in her room, in her chair, as always, Lemrina frowns. 

It’s not like she wants to lie. It’s not like she takes joy in it. She wishes that she didn’t need to. That people liked and respected her for herself, not because of her activation factor or ability to appear to be her sister. 

But that’s not going to happen. 

Not yet anyway. 

Lemrina doesn’t really want to be the ruler of Vers. She would gladly leave that role for her sister. 

All Lemrina wants is to be free of this chair. To be free of her legacy. 

She wants freedom. 

And if taking what her sister has is the path to that, if lying and deceiving and manipulating is the path to that, she will gladly do it. 

But she can’t lie to herself. And she knows that she is doing this at least partially out of spite for her sister. 

Asseylum got everything. Asseylum has everything and didn’t even appreciate it, didn’t deserve it. 

She sees Eddelrittuo’s devotion to the unconscious princess. Lemrina’s own maid doesn’t even really like her. 

Can she have nothing?

This morning she heard Slaine talking to Eddelrittuo in Asseylum’s room. 

Even Slaine, who doesn’t care about anything, not even himself, cares about Asseylum. 

That jealously was the last straw. 

Slaine cared about Asseylum.

But Slaine also cared about something more. 

Something Lemrina now knew about.

It may not have been the best or smartest time to use her knowledge of Slaine’s secret love. But she needed to do it then. She needed to make Slaine hurt, the way he had hurt her. She needed to see the pain in his eyes, which echoed her own. 

And it was all worth it. 

She can’t think clearly when she is filled with jealously. She needed to release that anger and pain somehow. And using Slaine was easy. 

_Maybe I am weak, after all…_

But she twisted it to her advantage again anyway. Now Slaine is on her side. Now Slaine has no more secrets to try and protect. They can work together. He can do whatever her wants to Vers. She doesn’t care. She doesn’t want it. She just wants Earth, and working legs, and freedom and happiness.

And Slaine is smart and dedicated. He can help her. They can help each other. 

She doesn’t hate Slaine, she realizes. Maybe in another life, she may have even really liked him. In a different world. 

But in this one, she’ll settle for a neutral alliance with him. 

-

“Calm,” Inaho says, floating through the dock with Inko and Rayet. “Is mine ready yet?”

“Repairs are complete, and it’s fully kitted out with a space loadout,” Calm replies. 

“Thanks.”

“Are you sure you want to keep that obnoxious color? I’ll paint it…”

“It’s okay. It’s supposed to attract attention.” 

One person in particular’s attention…

Inaho gets in his kataphrakt and prepares for battle against this surprise attack that was sent to precede the main force. 

He was mostly expecting this. 

And it’s unlikely that Slaine will be in such an attack. 

He can deal with this quickly and get back to formulating a plan to find or contact Slaine. 

-

Inaho’s eye whirls as it calculates the angle necessary for his shot to land. He lets his eye take over slightly and raises his gun to the angle. He fires the moment his eye tells him the enemy kataphrakt is in the right positon. 

The shot hits. 

“Compensating for gravity gradient resulting from dense satellite clusters. Ready. Target set. Fire.”

It hits. 

And so does the next one. 

Inaho begins to feel a slight ache from using his eye so much, so fast. 

He ignores it. “Next.”

Another enemy explodes. 

Shots begin flying towards him from all angles. His eye whirls, trying to keep track of it all. Inaho maneuvers his kataphrakt to an asteroid, which takes most of the damage. 

His eye tells him that there is a large ship that is the source of all the fire. He sends a well-placed shot towards it, and knows it will hit without needing to see it.

His whirls again, and it and his kataphrakt tell him another enemy has appeared in front of the ship. His eye gives him a quick calculation and he fires, knowing it will hit.

-

Slaine races the Tharsis in front of Count Saazbuam’s ship, which just took a hit. “Are you alright, Count Saazbuam?”

“I will act as decoy and draw their fire,” Slaine says. Count Saazbuam can’t be defeat yet. Slaine still needs him. Without Saazbuam, Slaine will be back to being nothing. Terran scum. Helpless again. He can’t lose now, not when he’s come this far. So he will protect Saazbuam. 

Slaine thrusts the Tharsis outwards. He hadn’t expected Earth forces to be doing this well. Usually, it was an easy battle. 

He will end this quickly.

He speeds towards the battle, and suddenly there is a shot heading right for him. 

Slaine’s eyes widen in surprise. He hadn’t expected to have to dodge much, and not so quickly. But the Tharsis shows him the bullets trajectory and he manages to jerk it to the side in time to avoid damage. 

It might have been a stray bullet from the battle. There is no way anyone would be able to see him this far out, none the less get such an accurate shot.

But two more shots fire in quick succession, each as accurate as the first. Slaine dodges, but something is wrong here. No one should be able to be that accurate. Especially not in this wind. 

Is it some kind of new technology? A machine?

-

Inaho is slightly frustrated. Why are his shots not landing? He knows that by all accounts they should be hitting. But they aren’t. 

More shots come towards Inaho. He is able to avoid them thanks to his eye working overtime. Fighting a battle in space is a lot more taxing than Inaho expected. He fires back, hoping that at least one will hit the enemy this time. 

-

Sweat is pooling on Slaine’s forehead. How can someone move and fire like that? It shouldn’t be possible. It’s almost like they have the Tharsis’s ability to see the future.

Slaine just wants this battle to be over. He just wants to get back to Moon Base and continue developing his plan. Fighting this battle here and now will not help him.

But it’s necessary, so he needs it over as quickly as possible. He doesn’t care who he has to kill to stay alive. The world will never change if he doesn’t try to fix it. The world will continue in its cycle of hatred and destruction. 

Slaine continues to fly towards the shots, and continues to enhance the view on his screen. He doesn’t know what’s firing these shots, but he’s going to find out. 

Slaine growls as he avoids another shot. 

Finally, the camera has picked up the object. 

Slaine drops the controls. 

A shot flies towards him and explodes off his left side. 

Slaine doesn’t care. 

He can’t take his eyes off the bright orange kataphrakt in front of him. 

Inaho…

-

Inaho wonders why his shots suddenly started hitting the enemy. He also wonders why there has been no return fire. And finally, he wonders why the kataphrakt appears to have stopped moving. 

All he has is the heat signature on his screen, but he doesn’t think it’s been damaged enough to be immobilized. So why?

Inaho fires another shot as he tells his monitor to pick up the object that was shooting at him. 

Inaho’s shot lands as the screen finally shows what he has been firing at all this time. 

Inaho lets out a tiny gasp at the sight of the Tharsis. 

Inaho’s kataphrakt is still. 

The two are floating in front of each other, neither moves. 

It might not be Slaine. The Tharsis could have received a new driver. Why would they allow Slaine, who is viewed as a traitor, operate the Tharsis? 

But then why isn’t it firing? Why did it stop fighting?

Inaho snaps to his senses and immediately begins work to hack the comm’s encryption. His eye whirls and he frantically works on his display, trying to assist it. 

If it is Slaine…

An announcement snaps him from his trace. “Enemy convoy is almost in effective firing range! Fire at will!”

Not now…

He tries to finish the task, but shots start flying past him from all angles. Explosions are bouncing off meteors and kataphrakts alive. 

He and whoever is in the Tharsis are right in the middle. 

If they don’t move they are going to be destroyed. 

But he doesn’t know who is inside the Tharsis. If it is Slaine, or an enemy. 

If it’s an enemy… Inaho’s probably already dead. There’s no way he can fire at the Tharsis again, not knowing if Slaine is in it or not, even if it starts attacking again. They could take him out right now. 

Inaho groans. It’s not like he has a choice. He’s not going to leave Slaine. Not again. Not when there’s even a remote possibility that he’s here. 

Inaho boosts through bullets and towards the Tharsis and wonders if this is where he dies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sorry for the delay! I really do try to be consistent :P
> 
> -Idk this chapter made me sad. 
> 
> -I really love Lemrina's character, but I know it's different than how she is usually portrayed, so I hope everyone else finds her as interesting as me. 
> 
> -Finally, a reunion coming up soon! 
> 
> -Thanks so much for reading and sticking with me for so long! I can't believe it's grown this big! But I love writing it, and I love hearing from you guys! You're the best! :)


	24. Chapter 24

Slaine watches, frozen, as both bullets and the orange kataphrakt rush towards him. He can see them, see the path their going to take. 

And yet, he still can’t move. 

It’s like its 19 months ago, and he’s helpless, useless, unable to move again. 

Slaine never, never, wanted to feel that way again. Never wanted to watch as those he loved risked their lives, while he could do nothing. 

That’s why he’s out here in the first place. That’s why he’s done everything he’s done. It’s why he’s given himself to this war: so he won’t be helpless anymore, so that he can change things, protect people. 

And it’s all going to be for nothing if Inaho (if that’s who really is in the orange kataphrakt is?) dies here, protecting Slaine again. 

And even though Slaine can see the future, he still can’t change it. The orange kataphrakt stops in front of Slaine, facing him, as bullets explode off its back. 

It smokes, heavily damaged. 

Slaine snaps out of his trance and desperately tries to connect to the other’s comm. 

It’s easier than Slaine had expected. It seems like the orange kataphrakt had already done everything he could on his end to open up the channel. Slaine curses himself. If he had tried that earlier, they could have talked and avoided all of this. 

Slaine falls silent as static from the comm fills his ears. What is he supposed to say? What if it’s not Inaho? 

What if it is…?

Another round of bullets flying near them finally prompts Slaine. 

“Move, you idiot!” Slaine yells, and intercepts the bullets with some of his own. 

“Slaine…”

Inaho...

Slaine is too busy keeping bullets at bay for his mind to fully process what is happening. Trying to protect Inaho from being hit, as well as himself, from both sides is very difficult. Sweat stings his eyes. 

“Get out of the way!”

“No.”

“You’re getting hit by your own side’s bullets!”

“I don’t care.”

Slaine slams his hand against the Tharsis in frustration. “Inaho!”

“I’ll always protect you, Slaine.”

Slaine doesn’t want Inaho to protect him. He should be protecting Inaho. He has spent the last 19 months putting himself in a position to protect Inaho. And yet, here they are again, Inaho sacrificing his life for Slaine. Inaho wouldn’t even be getting shot at if he wasn’t in front of Slaine, shielding him. 

And then the bullets stop. Slaine’s mind is still whirling, from keeping track of the future and present at the same time. 

“The wave has passed,” Inaho says. The two forces must have left orbit from each other. 

They should go back. 

Neither moves. 

Slaine is sure Inaho is getting the same orders he is: return to base. 

Slaine quickly mutes Inaho, and tells Harklight that he is going to scout the area, and take care of any stragglers. He will be back later. 

“Alright, milord. Be careful.”

Slaine wonders if Inaho made up a similar story.

Or if Inaho is going to leave him, again. 

Inaho is here. Inaho is really here. The reality of it slams into him.

As the adrenaline from the battle dies down, and it is apparent that both he and Inaho are fine, despair (and anger?) boils in Slaine’s stomach.  
Inaho is up here. Inaho is fighting. Inaho is fine. 

And yet, he never once tried to contact Slaine. Never came for Slaine. He abandoned Slaine and left him here while he was fighting on his own side, not caring about Slaine. 

And Slaine wonders if it’s better this way, if it’s better that Inaho wasn’t with him, isn’t with him. To accomplish what he needs to, he can’t have distractions, can’t have things to protect, things he cares about more than life itself, things that make him weak, make him feel. And Inaho is all of those things. Inaho would complicate everything. 

And Inaho obviously didn’t want him anyway.

So, Slaine ignores the way his heart is beating fast and painful in his chest, how much he wants to see Inaho (the real Inaho), how much he wants to be with Inaho again. 

Slaine is about to shut the communication channel off and direct the Tharsis back to Trident base, and try to forget he ever saw Inaho. 

“Don’t,” Inaho says, as Slaine’s finger hovers over the screen.

Slaine grits his teeth. Inaho always seemed to know what he was thinking. “You can’t tell me what to do. You lost that right when you left me up here alone,” Slaine says coldly. 

“I don’t expect you to understand-”

“Why? Because I’m not the tactical genius Inaho Kaizuka is?” Slaine puts as much poison in his words as he can. “Because I actually have feelings and wouldn’t use someone…make someone think that you… and then just….” Slaine fights the tears. He stops and puts on the mask he wore so well on Moon Base. He tries to mimic Inaho’s emotionlessness. 

If Inaho doesn’t care about anything, then neither will Slaine. He was stupid to think that Inaho ever loved him. It was so much better, easier, thinking that Inaho didn’t come for him because he was unable to. So much easier when he could keep those memories of their time together pure and untainted. But now, they are tinged with doubt and lies and betrayal. 

Slaine feels his heart breaking all over again. “Just leave, Inaho,” Slaine say, void of all emotion.

“You don’t have to forgive me. You don’t have to see me ever again after this. But at least let me explain. At least let me see you… at least let me say goodbye.”

Slaine wars with himself. He’s telling himself not to believe Inaho, not to trust him, don’t listen to him. Be logical. But his heart, and body and soul are aching to see Inaho. They want to believe him. Believe the emotion in his voice, believe that he actually cares.

Slaine’s not ready to fully believe Inaho yet, but he’s also physically unable to just let Inaho go, disappear, again, when he’s right here, in front of him. 

“Fine.”

-

It was difficult getting to Slaine’s quarters, but not nearly as difficult as Inaho had expected. The combination of their knowledge of a secret entrance to Moon Base, courtesy of Slaine’s father, and the fact that Slaine seemed to have risen in rank, making him much less monitored, all allowed Inaho to be standing in Slaine’s martian room, standing in front of Slaine. 

“Hello,” Inaho says. It’s the first word they’ve spoken face to face. Slaine hadn’t even looked at him as they made their way up here. And now they are standing at least 5 feet apart. It’s much too far for Inaho’s liking, but at least Slaine is looking at him. 

Even if his beautiful blue eyes narrow in anger at Inaho, Inaho is still insanely happy to be here. He drinks in the sight of Slaine. “Say what you want to say,” Slaine says coolly. 

Inaho might almost be fooled into thinking Slaine really didn’t care anymore, that he was as empty as his voice sounded, if it wasn’t for his eye going crazy, picking up Slaine’s heart rate and body temperature. Slaine is a lot less collected than he’s pretending to be.

Inaho takes a step towards Slaine. Slaine hastily steps back, his heart rate increases dramatically. Inaho decides not to push it, despite how much he wants to be close to Slaine, hold him. 

Inaho settles with just taking Slaine in. He looks very similar to how he did 19 months ago. His face is a bit narrower, Inaho notes. And he might be a bit taller, though not by much. He’s wearing a new uniform, which looks very good on him… 

“Are you going to say something, Orange?!” Slaine snaps, breaking his cold façade. 

Inaho smiles at the use of his nickname, at the familiar emotion (annoyance) in Slaine’s voice, at Slaine’s eyes. At Slaine. 

“You can’t just smile!” 

Inaho feels tension leave his body, and a weight release his mind. Slaine is still the same. Slaine is still Slaine. 

Something in the room snaps, and Slaine is in Inaho’s arms. Just like he should be. And he is gripping Inaho’s back tightly, and his body is warm against Inaho’s. Just like it should be. Inaho strokes the soft hairs at the base of Slaine's neck.

“I’m sorry, Slaine.”

Slaine snorts derisively, but doesn’t let go of Inaho. 

“I came up here to find you.”

“Well it took you long enough,” Slaine mutters bitterly. Inaho is slightly perturbed by the fact that Slaine’s eyes seem to be dry. From what he knew of Slaine, he would normally be crying in such a situation. Has Slaine really changed after all?

“It was as fast as I could,” Inaho says. He hopes Slaine will believe him. He hopes Slaine will trust him, forgive him. Still want him. “I didn’t intend to take this long, when I said I would find you.”

“Then why did you?”

Inaho hesitates. He really doesn’t want to tell Slaine about the extent of his injuries, about his months in a coma and therapy. About his eye. “I-”

Slaine pulls back and looks at Inaho hard. “Don’t lie to me, Orange."

Inaho sighs faintly. He would gladly lie to Slaine if he could, but logic (and his eye) tell him that it’s very likely that Slaine would find out anyway. And then be even angrier. 

“I was injured.”

Inaho feels Slaine tense in his arms. “Injured how?”

“I was shot, as I’m sure you know. Through the eye. I survived, but I was comatose for a period of time, about 5 months. And then I had a recovery period, and therapy. And then I had to convince the UFE to let me return to battle. It look longer than I wanted,” Inaho says, trying to make his explanation brief enough to not give too much away, but detailed enough so that Slaine won’t ask more questions.

“What… how… Why are you such an idiot?!” Slaine pushes himself out of Inaho’s arms and looks at him with so much anger. But the eye also senses something else in Slaine’s expression, not anger towards Inaho. 

“You always put yourself in danger!! How are you even alive?!” Slaine demands.  
Inaho hopes Slaine doesn’t expect a real answer to that question. Inaho stays silent, which is apparently the wrong thing to do, since Slaine’s eyes narrow. 

“How are you alive, Inaho?” He says in a deadly voice. “If you were shot in the head?”

“The doctors managed to save my life. The injury was severe and I suffered blood loss and the bullet went into my brain, but because I had no foo-”

“You were shot through your eye… What was the therapy for?”

Inaho pauses, but Slaine is too smart. He’s already figured half of it out. “They couldn’t save the eye.”

Slaine blanches. “What…?” he whispers in horror. 

So he hadn’t figured out that much. “Yes, but-”

“Then what is that?!” Slaine demands, pointing at Inaho’s right eye. 

“That is my real eye,” Inaho says dryly. “This,” he says, covering his left eye with his hand. “Is an experimental prototype.”

Inaho can practically see the wheels turning in Slaine’s head. “What does it do?” Slaine asks, still very angry. 

Inaho sighs. This is not what Inaho wanted to be doing when he reunited with Slaine. “It’s an analytical engine.”

Slaine’s eyes narrow even further. “That’s how you were able to shoot so accurately in that wind.”

“Yes.”

Slaine puts his covers his face with his hands. Inaho slowly puts his arms around Slaine again. He is pleased to hear Slaine crying behind his hands. It’s much more typical of Slaine. 

“Why are you smiling?!”

As Inaho looks at Slaine’s angry, tear stained face; there are so many reasons. 

And Slaine’s face shows the beginning of a smile, the first Inaho has seen in 19 months. It’s not big, and it’s not joyful, and it’s not the smiles Slaine used to give him, but it’s something. 

“This is a new uniform,” Inaho notes. 

“Yes…” Slaine says slowly. “I am ranked a knight now.”

“You’re hair has gotten longer,” Inaho also notes, taking in the all the difference from up close. 

“Yes, that tends to happen as time goes on,” Slaine replies wryly, and slightly self-consciously. 

Inaho slowly moves his hand to touch Slaine’s hair, giving him enough time to pull away if he wanted. He feels the blonde hair that he’s missed so much. It’s tangled from battle, it’s not the cleanest, but Inaho couldn’t care less. 

“I like it,” he tells Slaine, and is happy to see red bloom on Slaine’s cheeks. 

Slaine snorts. “I see your hair is exactly the same,” Slaine says, and gently tugs on a piece on the nape of Inaho’s neck. “Probably down to half an inch,” Slaine mutters.

Inaho shifts his face closer to Slaine’s, once again glad that Slaine didn’t get much taller. Inaho himself hadn’t grown an inch. “My hair is the optimal length. It took me a few tries to discover it, but why would I change it, when it’s not too-”

“Shut up, Orange,” Slaine says and gently kisses Inaho. Inaho is slightly surprised. Judging by how mad Slaine had been at him earlier, he didn’t think Slaine was going to kiss him. Yelling at him seemed more likely. 

Though, in hindsight, Slaine’s heart rate and pulse had increased when Inaho hugged him, and again when they touched each other’s hair. Inaho had assumed it was left over anger, but… 

Inaho realizes that he’s going to have to use his eye for more selfish purposes, and fully devotes himself to kissing Slaine.

It’s like their first kiss all over again, Inaho vaguely notes through a wonderful haze. It’s clumsy, and rough and hungry. The sound of their kiss fills the room, creates a rhythm that Inaho would never tire of.

Slaine’s hand is still at the back of Inaho’s neck and Inaho’s is still touching Slaine’s hair. Neither moves them. Neither moves anything, besides their lips. This feels too new, too raw, too dangerous. 

And Inaho realizes it’s not like their first kiss at all. There is a wariness, a hesitancy, that wasn’t present before. It’s like they are standing in a patch, surrounded by fire and knives. If they move at all, they will get cut and burned. 

It’s on Slaine’s end, Inaho can sense it. Slaine is holding back, and in turn, Inaho is holding back. Slaine is scared, Slaine is unsure. 

Inaho doesn’t know why. He’s never been surer of anything before. He is absolutely sure that he is supposed to be here, kissing Slaine. That he is always supposed to be next to Slaine. He knows that even without his eye. Even though no analytical engine, or computer, or predictive analysis can tell him that it’s true. He knows it’s true anyway.

But Slaine pulls away, and Inaho can see the uncertainty on his face. Still, neither moves. Slaine opens his mouth and Inaho prepares for the worst.

-

“It’s all my fault,” Slaine says, and pulls further away from Inaho. He can feel Inaho’s reluctance to let Slaine back away, like a rubber band pulling him back. But Slaine stands strong. 

“No it’s not. You can’t always take the blame for everything. You don’t control everyone’s actions, you don’t control the way the world-”

“I stopped you from killing Count Saazbuam… if I hadn’t-”

“And I stopped you from killing him later,” Inaho says calmly.

“It’s not the same! I’m directly responsible for-”

“If I had let you kill him, he wouldn’t have been able to shoot me. And I’m fine, Slaine. It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine! You’re not fine!” Slaine yells. Inaho doesn’t understand. “You got shot through the head! You lost your eye!”

“And I’m fine. You wouldn’t have even known if I hadn’t told you.”

Slaine steps back towards Inaho, letting the rubber band pull him. He puts his hand gently under Inaho’s left eye. “It’s not real, Inaho! This isn’t your eye! It’s a machine! There’s a computer in your head! It’s not okay!”

The hurt that flashes on Inaho’s face makes Slaine quickly remove his hand and step back. Inaho’s emotions rarely showed on his face, and when they did it wasn’t so apparent. But it was so obvious, the way Inaho’s face had twisted. Anyone could have seen it. 

“Inaho I didn’t-”

“You always said I was like a machine anyway, that I have no feelings,” Inaho’s face has returned to its usual expressionlessness. The rubber band pulling Slaine closer to Inaho has completely disappeared. “So it doesn’t matter. I know it’s unappealing and you don’t want-”

“No!”

“We have to go back now,” Inaho says calmly, abruptly changing the subject from a bad one to a worse one. “To the Deucalion. Now, before they realize that you are gone, and before the attack on-”

“I’m not going.”

“Just because my eye is-”

“That’s not it, you idiot!”

“Then why?”

Slaine puts his head in his hands. How is he supposed to explain to Inaho what he’s doing? What he’s done? This is why it was safer, having Inaho an infinite, unknowable distance away. It was easier, better. Now Inaho is here and everything is hard, unpredictable. He shouldn’t have kissed Inaho. He should told Inaho to leave and let it be, fight through the pain, like he has been doing for the past 19 months. 

He shouldn’t have let them fall back into old habits, not when that past is dead and gone. It can’t come back. Kissing Inaho was stupid. And now he’s going to have to tell Inaho to leave.

“Why, Slaine?” Inaho demands. The room is tense and angry. 

“I need to finish this war.”

“This isn’t your war, and this isn’t your side.”

“I have no side! I just want the war to end. To never start again! Break the cycle of hatred…!” Slaine winces at his last words, and he knows Inaho recognizes them as well. 

“I see,” Inaho says and glances down at Slaine’s uniform again, in a much less playful manner than before. “And you’re rising in rank.”

“Yes… I want to fix things… I don’t want to be helpless anymore…”

He shouldn’t have kissed Inaho. Shouldn’t have gotten him involved in this. This was his mess, his burden, not Inaho’s. 

He feels Inaho’s eyes on him, but he can’t rise to meet them. How is he going to survive saying goodbye to Inaho again?

“Fine,” Inaho says, and the tension snaps, leaving the room feeling empty, ready to fill with the next emotion. 

Slaine looks at Inaho in surprise. “What?”

“You don’t have to come with me now. You can do what you feel like you need to up here. But I’m not leaving you again.”

“You… you can’t stay here!” 

Inaho smiles lightly. “I know, Bat. But I have an idea.”

-

“Stupid,” Slaine mutters to himself. “This is so stupid.”

But he feels lighter than he has in over a year. Yet he still has a familiar scowl on his face. 

He knows their previous conversations aren’t over. There’s a lot of explosive topics Slaine knows will come up eventually, shattering their fake peace. They can’t go back to the way it was. It can never be the way it was again. Too much has happened. There are too many differences, too much hurt. That past is gone. Gone. All they have now is this uncertain future.

Slaine scowls harder.

This is stupid. Stupid, dangerous, stupid.

He can’t believe he let Inaho talk him into this. He nearly got Inaho killed once.

It would be so much easier to have gone back to the Deucalion with Inaho. 

But Slaine isn’t going to let all of this be for nothing. He isn’t going to let the world delve deeper into despair. 

He refuses to be helpless again. 

He’s doing this to protect Inaho. 

But if he kills Inaho in the process…?

-

Inaho can’t help the smile on his face as he secures the miniature hypergate that he and Slaine borrowed from Slaine’s father’s laboratory. He hopes no one comes in here and sees him smiling. They would be instantly suspicious. And he can’t have anyone finding out where he went. 

It was difficult enough to explain his absence to Captain Magbaredge, but he managed to do it without making her suspicious. For now. It’s going to be difficult to hide the Tharsis’s existence from everyone. Luckily, most of the crew is new, and don’t know about Slaine. 

There are some people that might be a problem though; Inko, Rayet, Captain Magbaredge. 

Inaho knows he can’t let anyone know that he has reunited with Slaine. Not yet. 

But Slaine will come back soon. Slaine will come back to the Deucalion. He will realize that he can’t fight this war by himself; it’s pointless. So this has to just be for now. 

They can be like they were before. They can fix their past and have the future that they were meant to have. 

Inaho touches his eye. That is, if Slaine even wants him. 

He shouldn’t be so upset about Slaine’s comments. There was nothing inherently mean about them. Slaine wasn’t trying to insult him. It’s just the horror in his voice, it was obvious he was appalled. 

It’s fine. If Slaine doesn’t want him anymore, that’s his choice. At least he’s alive and relatively safe. Though, Inaho will feel better when he gets Slaine back here, no matter how they end up.

Inaho seals the box with the hypergate with a combination that only his eye knows. Without its help, even Inaho wouldn’t be able to determine the sequence.  
It’s not a real solution, but it’s the best they can do in this situation. 

Inaho wonders if there’s a way to make the hypergate even smaller… This one’s existence proves that the large one originally found on the moon was able to be replicated. Though, if it was by Slaine’s father or the originally inhabitants is unknown. Inaho makes a note to do some research on the subject. 

Inaho also makes a note to request his own room. He can’t have anyone, especially not Calm, prying. It should be simple enough, especially with the excuse of his eye requiring special accommodations. Slaine can hate his eye all he wants, but he can’t deny that it’s useful.

-

“Orange!”

“What?”

“Your feet are cold,” Slaine grumbles. 

Inaho looks up at Slaine, unconcerned. “You know I have poor circulation.”

Slaine looks away from Inaho and mutters something unintelligible. He doesn’t know why he let Inaho sleep here last night. It was stupid. It was weak. 

But there’s a sleepy Inaho, with ruffled bedhead, looking at Slaine. And Slaine is so weak. 

He looks back, and Inaho’s eyes look like home. 

But one of those eyes isn’t real, Slaine reminds himself. That’s not the same eye he looked into 19 months ago. That’s not the same eye he loved.

It’s a machine that’s attached to Inaho’s brain. A machine that makes itself look like Inaho’s eye. It’s not real. Who knows how Inaho is even seeing him with it? Is Slaine a series of data points and numbers to that eye? To Inaho? What kind of information is the eye feeding Inaho right now?

Slaine fights the urge to hide from the eye’s gaze. 

And when Inaho moves closer and holds Slaine tighter, Slaine just wants to relax into Inaho, and for it to be like it used to be. With Slaine berating Inaho about his cold feet, and Inaho promising he would wear socks next time. 

But everything has changed. 

The home in Inaho’s eyes is different. Slaine is different. It can’t be the same. 

“I’ll wear socks next time,” Inaho mutters lightheartedly into Slaine’s chest. 

Slaine wants to cry. But instead he abruptly sits up, unceremoniously dumping Inaho off of him. “There isn’t going to be a next time, Inaho!”

Inaho sits up and looks at him seriously. “Yes there is.”

“No there’s not! This was a mistake!”

“Because of-”

“Not because of your eye!” Slaine throws his hands up. “Because this is dangerous!”

“Not if you come back with me.”

“I can’t.”

“Yes you can. You just don’t want to,” Inaho says accusatorily. 

“Of course I want to, Inaho. I want to so bad. But I can’t let the war continue like this… the world continue like this…”

“You can fight from Earth’s side.”

“It won’t be enough! I don’t want to just end the war, I want to change things! If I don’t try everything will stay the same! I have to try…”

Inaho leans forward and gently kisses Slaine. “Come back with me,” Inaho appeals. And his face is so open and honest and raw at that moment. Slaine can’t look. Inaho’s lips hover near his, waiting for a response. 

“Don’t ask me that… if I’m selfish… if we’re selfish, the world will die. I can’t be selfish,” Slaine says, trying hard not to respond to the kiss. If he does, he’s lost. 

Inaho closes his eyes and leans away. “Fine. But don’t tell me that there isn’t going to be a next time, because I won’t accept that.”

Inaho stands up and grabs his jacket from the nearby chair. “Goodbye, Slaine. I’ll see you tomorrow at the agreed upon time,” Inaho says without even looking at Slaine still sitting in bed. 

And then he’s gone. 

Slaine doesn’t move from the bed for what feels like hours. 

He keeps replaying everything over again. 

What if he had gone with Inaho? Maybe he could change things from the Deucalion… maybe… Maybe he’s not even making a difference here. Maybe he can’t even change things at all, and everything he’s done, everything he’s lost, has been in vain. 

If he had kissed Inaho back then…

No. 

Slaine steels his resolve, and his heart, and knows he has to continue on the path he has set for himself.

-

“So Seylum is alive,” Inaho states, lying next to Slaine. 

Slaine starts. He can’t believe they hadn’t talked about this, that he forgot all about this. “Yes…She is unconscious, in cryogenic sleep… since she was shot…”

Slaine vaguely remembers a time when Princess Asseylum was the most important thing in his life. A time when all he would have thought about was her. And even now, she is important to him. She was his first friend, the only martian who was kind to him. She was like the family he never had. She was the reason Slaine had to leave Inaho in the first place. She is sweet and kind and innocent, and Slaine wanted to make the world the same way for her. A place where she can be happy.  
She will always be a part of him. But that goal has started to evolve past her… 

“I visit her every day… she’ll wake up soon, I know it…” a sudden thought rushes to Slaine’s mind. “Inko! Calm… Nina… are they…?” he can’t believe he didn’t ask sooner. 

“They’re all fine. They’ve been fighting while I was unable.”

Slaine sighs in relief. “Good.” 

Inaho hums in agreement and nuzzles his face closer to Slaine’s. “I missed you,” he mutters into Slaine’s ear. 

Slaine suppresses a shiver and turns away from Inaho. 

Slaine can feel Inaho’s eyes (eye) boring into him. “You’re holding back.”

Slaine doesn’t turn around at the accusation. Of course he’s holding back. He’s currently in bed with the enemy!

“You were never one to hide your emotions.”

Slaine ignores Inaho’s prodding. 

Inaho kisses his cheek. “Come ba-”

Slaine turns to face Inaho angrily. “Don’t say it!”

Inaho doesn’t blink. “It was the only way to get a reaction out of you. You’re different, now.”

“Of course I’m different! It’s been almost two years, Inaho! What did you expect?! We’re in the middle of a war that could destroy the world! What do you want?! To go back and play games and make messes?!”

“Yes. And we could, if you would only-”

“You’re being naïve! I didn’t think you of all people would be so ignorant!” 

“it’s not ignorant to believe in us.”

“You would sacrifice the world so that we can watch movies and eat breakfast.”

“Yes. I would sacrifice anything for you.”

Slaine sits up. “Well I don’t want that! I don’t want a temporary happiness! I want a world where we could be happy forever! And we can’t have that if I don’t try! The past is gone, Inaho! We can’t go back!”

Inaho sits up too. “It won’t be forever if you die, Slaine. Come back and we can-”

Slaine stands up and turns his back on Inaho. “I don’t want you here anymore. Leave.” 

Slaine is still and silent as he listens to Inaho get up. “You’re lying,” Inaho says calmly. 

“I’m not. I don’t want to see you anymore,” Slaine says emotionlessly. 

Slaine hears Inaho move closer to him. He still doesn’t turn around. “I know you’re lying, Slaine. I can see your stress levels and they correlate to someone telling a lie.”

Slaine whips around. “So you can read my mind now?” he demands angrily. 

“It’s not like that. I simply use the data you are feeding me and-”

“Your eye… that thing… am I just data now?!”

“No, it’s just gathering information that I can use.”

“So I’m constantly being analyzed. You can’t understand people, so you use your eye to do it for you,” Slaine says, deadly calm.

Inaho winces, and Slaine feels slightly guilty for hurting Inaho again. But Slaine’s been hurt too, and it runs deep, and is constantly trying to escape, and infect those Slaine cares about. 

“Why are you pushing me away?” Inaho asks, hurt still evident in his voice. 

And Slaine can’t take it anymore. “Because I love you!” he yells and pushes Inaho against the wall. “Because I still love you, Inaho! And I can’t stop!” 

Inaho mashes his lips into Slaine’s. Slaine trembles as their lips angrily pull at each other’s. Slaine takes Inaho's hand in his and grips it tightly. He lets the other ghost down Inaho's neck and collar bone. He missed Inaho so much. He missed every inch of him. 

From the beginning, their relationship was fire. Even before they kissed for the first time, it was heated and passionate and fiery. It burned bright and strong.  
And now the flames are going to consume them, burn them alive. Slaine can feel it, the fire is no longer contained. It’s burning wild and free and dangerous. But he doesn’t care. He needs this fire to survive. 

Fire isn’t meant to be played with, you can’t play with fire without getting burned. 

This fire will only destroy them, and everything they touch. It is dangerous and deadly and Slaine knows it will be the death of him.  
But for now, with his body pressed flushed against Inaho’s and Inaho’s ragged breathing against his mouth, it is the only thing keeping him alive.

“I love you too, Slaine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Yay I'm happy they are back together! 
> 
> -Sorry this wasn't the super happy reunion that they deserve :(
> 
> -Bringing back that hypergate as a convenient plot device ;)
> 
> -I actually updated on time! Hopefully I will be able to next week too!. Thanks for reading, and everything! If anyone ever wants to talk or has any ideas or anything, that would be great! You guys are the best :)


	25. Chapter 25

“May I ask a question?” Inaho asks. “Queen to F3,” he adds as a side note and watches the virtual piece move. 

“Go ahead,” Captain Magbaregde says. “King to G7.”

“Is it a good idea to send me into battle? Rook to E4. If I die, the Deucalion’s aldnoah will shut down.”

“I’m aware of that. But we’ll worry about that when we have to.”

“Do you want to be removed from the front lines, Ensign Kaizuka?” XO Mizusaki asks curiously. 

Inaho had considered it. It was one of the many scenarios he ran through when he realized he and Slaine would be fighting on opposite sides. “No. I’ll go into battle. Queen to F6. Check.” 

He determined he would better be able to help Slaine if he fought. After all, it took him so long to get permission to go back into battle. If he asked to be removed, they would most likely send him away somewhere where he couldn’t be useful at all. Inaho can’t get Slaine to come back here if he’s sent somewhere else. Inaho can’t protect Slaine that way. And Inaho isn’t going to leave Slaine again.

“King to F6. King takes Queen. We’re in agreement then.”

“Bishop to E5. Check.”

Captain Magbaredge leans forward and looks closely at Inaho. “Did you come up with that move yourself? Or was it something from your analytical engine?” 

Inaho covers his left eye. “It’s mine. About 70-30,” Inaho says honestly. 

“About 70-30?”

“I’m assigning tasks to unused brain cells to try to optimize its processing,” Inaho examines both the women in the room with his eye, pleased with the data he is able to pick up. It seems as though his experiment is working. “So it’s both the device’s suggestion and my idea at the same time.”

Hopefully by using optimizing it, he can save Slaine. 

Captain Magbaredge looks slightly unsettled, but quickly recovers. “This ship and her crew both owe you our lives. If you want to fight, I think that we should support that.”

Inaho didn’t save anyone. Slaine is the one who always risked his life for his friends. Slaine is the one who cared about the whole crew and tried to save as many people as he could. Slaine is a good person. Better than Inaho will ever be. Slaine tries to save everyone.

Inaho couldn’t even save the one person he needed to more than anything. “I don’t deserve any special treatment.”

Captain Magbaredge narrows her eyes. “Did you hear that aldnoah activation tests were conducted, using blood samples that had been drawn from the princess? King to G5. Result: failure. Blood alone was not sufficient for aldnoah activation. So you could be considered a special case indeed, Ensign Kaizuka.”

Inaho doesn’t think so. He just happened to be the only one who knew CPR at the time. The fact that he could activate the aldnoah drive wasn’t on any part of his own. 

“When you resurrected the princess, the activation factor transferred to… no… infected you. Then it was fully activated when you came into contact with royal blood. Over the past 10 months or so, we’ve obtained plenty of information on aldnoah and their kataphrakts. But they still have overwhelming edge in military strength. There’s no guarantee that we will win if we keep on fighting. But if we do, I put my money on you Ensign Kaizuka.”

Inaho would have advised her against that. After all, he is opposite Slaine. Even if Inaho was going to fight completely against Slaine, he might lose. But he won’t fight Slaine. Not directly. So the odds aren’t in his favor.

Inaho wonders if Captain Magbarege even remembers Slaine. If she thinks he is alive? If she knows of Inaho’s still-standing dedication to him? Maybe not, since she hasn’t mentioned anything. Maybe, because she tried so hard to keep him off of this ship. Results inconclusive, not enough data. “Bishop to G7.”

XO Mizusaki looks at Captain Magbaredge. “Do you resign?”

Captain Magbaredge raises her hand to her face thoughtfully. “Was that your move or your left eye’s?”

Inaho is tired of everyone questioning his eye. He’s tired of Slaine being disgusted by it. It’s not like he had a choice in the matter. He needs it. “I’ll leave that to your imagination.”

-

Slaine stares calmly ahead as he fires round after round of bullets into space. Slaine is very purposefully not thinking about last night. He can’t afford to get distracted. He can’t afford to get soft. 

Slaine checks the Tharsis’s display. “I guess not even the Tharsis can see that far into the future,” Slaine mutters to himself. 

How much easier would it be if the Tharsis really could show him the future, instead of just using predictive analysis to give him a few seconds? He could see how everything would turn out… if what he is doing will really make a difference… his future with Inaho…

But there’s no way to know any of that, so Slaine makes his way back to Marianos Base, where the frontal attack on Trident base will take place from. Despite everything that has happened, Slaine still needs to fight. 

He docks, and as soon as he opens the Tharsis’s hatch, Harklight is there in his face. “Welcome back, Milord Slaine,” he says. 

“I clustered my shots in the region you calculated, Mr. Harklight,” Slaine replies. 

“Let us pray they won’t be influenced by some unexpected wind,” Harklight says as they float away from the docks. 

Slaine had been surprised to discover that his aminosity towards Harklight had been erased with Inaho’s return. Slaine had a lot to be bitter about (and still is), but Harklight is not part of that. Slaine has no reason to dislike the man (besides him being a little over attentive). And he has even proven useful.

“Ahhh, I thought I smelled something,” A red-clad figure on the walkway says tauntingly. “A dog has snuck aboard.”

“A rather grubby one at that,” adds the other count that Slaine and Harklight are currently headed towards. 

“What are you doing here?” the first one asks. 

Slaine lands and bows deeply, and Harklight does the same. “Good day, Count Barouhcruz, Count Marylcian. I rushed here so I might join in the battle as well.”

Count Barouhcruz smirks. “Terran dog.” 

Count Marylcian twirls his finger in his blond hair. “Mind your tongue,” he says with a smile, and grabs his weapon from his side. 

Slaine tenses, but doesn’t move from his respectful bow. As the sheathed sword heads towards time, every instinct is urging Slaine to fight, but he knows that everything will be lost if he does. 

The sword is cased, so it will not kill him. He braces himself for a hit (not like he’s not used to them anyway). But there’s a dull thump, and when Slaine opens his eyes, Count Saazbuam is standing in front of him, cane extended to block the sword. 

“Count Saazbuam!” Count Marylcian says, surprised. 

“Slaine Troyard is my vassal. If he has given some offense, I offer my apologies,” Count Saazbuam says. 

At least some good has come from gaining his trust for the past year. At least sacrificing his life… Inaho’s eye… hasn’t all been for nothing. Though, if he had to choose between being hit by Count Marylcian’s sword a million times, and Inaho having his real eye, he would choose Inaho every time. 

“However, if this treatment is unwarranted,” Count Saazbuam continues, as Count Marylcian withdraws his outstretched sword. “Count Marylcian, it will not go well for you.”

Count Barouhcruz scowls. “If this terran was merely your pet, it would be eccentric, but tolerable. But to appoint him a knight? Is that not taking your game too far?”

“Count Barouhcruz, it is not your place to offer opinions regarding my vassals. 

Count Marylcian is getting increasingly agitated. “Perhaps, but him fighting alongside us is another matter entirely! One cannot take to the field of battle with someone who might turn traitor at any moment.”

They don’t have to worry about that, Slaine thinks grimly. If he was going to turn traitor, it would have been 12 hours ago, when he and Inaho’s bodies were twined together. He’s turned traitor on Earth, on Inaho, not the other way around. He has no reason to kill these two counts now, no matter how mad they make Slaine. They are safe from him.

“If that is your concern, please strike me down right now,” Slaine says, without raising his eyes. He hates the way he has to act like he is helpless to them, act like he is at their mercy. They are fools, they don’t see what this war really is. They are here for honor and riches. In Slaine’s new word, there will not be people like them. There will not be those who can exert power over others simply because they are rich. “You are entirely correct, if I go into battle with you, it might very well be me who is attacked from behind.”

Count Marylcian’s face contorts. “How dare you!” and this time he fully draws his sword, perhaps prepared to kill Slaine. Slaine briefly wonders if he miscalculated and just destroyed everything here. Will Count Saazbuam let him be killed? At least he and Inaho didn’t end on a fight…

But Count Saazbuam interrupts the swing. “Men!” he yells, getting the attention of everyone in the docking station. “Hear me, all of you! By the grace of the emperor of Vers, I name Slaine Troyard my son, right here and now.”

Count Marylcian and Barouhcruz recoil in horror. Slaine’s time of practice controlling his expressions is the only thing keeping him from doing the same. What is happening? He hadn’t taken this situation into consideration…never.

Slaine stares, not-seeing, at the ground as Count Saazbuam continues. “All of you here are my witnesses!”

Slaine raises his head. “Count….” 

“Rise, Slaine. From this day forth, you are my son,” Count Saazbuam turns to Count Marylcian. “Will you raise a hand to him even now, Count Marylcian?”

Slaine stands and Count Marylcian puts away his sword. “If you are prepared to go to such lengths, so be it,” he says with disgust. “But if his behavior is the least bit suspicious, I will put him down without mercy.” He flips his curls, and they are gone.

Slaine immediately turns to Count Saazbuam. “Forgive me, I have put you in an awkward positon.”

“It is fine. I have decided to do this a long time ago.”

Slaine looks up in surprise. 

“I, too, take to the field of battle. I must have a successor just in case. From now on, think of me as your father,” Count Saazbuam says, and smiles. 

Slaine bows, and his mind is racing with the implications as Saazbuam leaves.

“Congratulations, Milord Slaine!” Harklight says behind him, like Slaine just won a contest or something. 

And maybe he had…

“The counts heir… that puts you one step closer to your dream.”

“That’s enough, Harklight,” Slaine snaps. He had told Harklight his goal. Some of his goal. Of fixing the world. Slaine didn’t think the man will betray him, and what he told him was not incriminating on its own. And so far, Harklight has been a good help. But he can’t say things like that in public… especially after this happened. This thing that Slaine had absolutely not planned for. 

Besides, Slaine isn’t doing this for himself. If Slaine was truly following his dream, he would have left with Inaho last night, and would be with him right now, planning for battle on the same side. Slaine turns around and smiles at Harklight. “I don’t have any dreams.”

-

Lemrina sits in her chair, like always, and looks out her large window, like always. “It’s almost time,” she says giddily to Eddelrittuo. 

“Yes…” Eddelrittuo says hesitantly. 

Lemrina sees her own smirk in the window’s reflection as she turns to face Eddelrittuo. “Who do you think will win, Eddelrittuo?”

“Th-the glorious Vers Imperial Forces will emerge victorious, of course!” 

“Oh? Doesn’t that trouble you?” Lemrina asks innocently. “You have friends aboard a United Earth Forces ship, don’t you?”

“Perish the thought! Friends on earth?!”

Lemrina smiles. It’s like Eddelrittuo forgot all the stories she told Lemrina. Despite her protests, it was easy to see Eddelrittuo had grown fond of the people on the Deucalion. “Of course. Let’s have a wager, then.”

“A wager?”

“If the Vers Empire wins, I bet…let me think…my sister’s life, perhaps?” Lemrina says. Eddelrittuo gasps. “I’m joking, of course,” Lemrina plays, unconcerned, with her hair. 

She said is mostly for the shock value. Just because she is smart, doesn’t mean she has to have a good reason for everything. She has enough bitterness inside her to share with everyone. And it’s fun seeing peoples’ reactions. 

But she really is half-joking. Lemrina has no desire to be the princess of a civilization that would only like her for her bloodline. But what she wants is to go to earth. And her sister was allowed to do that. Her sister had power. Her sister had control over her own life. Her sister had everything.

Lemrina studies her reflection in the window. She wonders, not for the first time, how much concentration it would take to keep a different appearance forever. How much work it would take to escape and live out her life on Earth. 

But of course, there are a few bigger obstacles in her way right now. When she does make it to earth, she wants to be able to walk on her own two feet. 

But also, when she makes it to earth, she doesn’t want it to be destroyed and taken over by the society she despises immediately after. 

So she is going to put her dreams in the hands of Slaine Troyard and hope his end goals are what she thinks they are.

But just because she has to rely on Slaine, doesn’t mean she’s willing to give him full control, all the power. No. She’s tired of just being something to be used. She’s going to take a part in shaping her future. She will play her own role in this, make sure Slaine doesn’t fail. Make sure she gets what she wants in the end. She will fulfill her own dreams. 

“What are you dreaming of right now, dear sister?” 

-

“Count Saazbuam!” Slaine pants, catching up with the man. 

Count Saazbuam stops and turns around. “What is it, Slaine?” He asks, stern as always. 

“I just… I just needed to know… why?”

Saazbuam’s face loses some of its hardness. His eyes soften. “I always wanted a son, Slaine. I think of you as my son. Orlane and I… we were going to start a family. You remind me of her in many ways. She was strong-willed and had a sharp tongue as well. I’d like to think our son would have turned out more like her than me. Turned out like you, Slaine.”

Saazbaum turns and looks out the window near them, where the debris from the moon is swirling around. His face hardens once again. “But I’ll never know. They took that away from me. I hope I would have been a better father to our son than I have been to you.”

Saazbuam turns towards Slaine again. “I know we’ve had our differences, Slaine. But I believe we have put those behind us now. We are working towards a common cause. We will eliminate this cycle of hatred that killed Orlane, and that left your princess in that state. Your father would have been proud of you, as I am.”

Slaine is once again struck by how much Saazbuam must have really loved Orlane. He wouldn’t have thought it possible from the man in front of him. But that’s probably because it wasn’t possible, because Orlane’s death had changed him, made him a man that couldn’t love again. 

Other counts would have remarried, produced heirs, moved on with their lives. It’s been almost 20 years, and he still mourns her. He’s been trying to avenge her death for almost 20 years. 

2 years ago, Slaine would have considered him crazy. But now…? He’s headed down a similar path, isn’t he? He would do the same for Inaho, wouldn’t he?

Slaine wonders is he is going to turn into Count Saazbuam one day. But he quickly drives away the thought, because that would mean Inaho would be….

Saazbuam smiles sadly at Slaine as he walks away. “You are the only son I will ever have, Slaine. Orlane would have liked you.”

-

Inaho lays in his bed, looking at the ceiling, but not really. He has his eye cover over his left eye, running some data through it. 

Data about Slaine. He knows Slaine would be furious if he knew Inaho was doing this. But Inaho is just utilizing all of his resources. It’s no different than plugging data into a computer and letting it run the analysis. This computer just happens to be in his head. 

And that’s the part that seems to make Slaine the angriest (though, Inaho suspects Slaine wouldn’t be too happy about the other method either).  
But Slaine always seems to be mad anyway, so it doesn’t matter. 

Even when they’re kissing, even last night, there’s an anger still present in Slaine. Inaho might not have noticed before, but his eye definitely picks up constant signs of anger coming from Slaine. 

Was is always like this? 

Inaho didn’t have his eye to tell him 2 years ago, but he doesn’t think so. 

Before, while Slaine was prone to emotional outbursts, and did get angry at Inaho, it wasn’t like this. 

Before, his anger was fiery and explosive, but gone as quickly as it came. Now, it’s cold and bitter and embedded. 

Inaho uploads all the data from yesterday into his eye, and brings up statistics. 

“Tharsis…” he mutters to himself, watching the details shift across his field of vision. “Confirmed pilot: Slaine Troyard.”

Which means that Slaine kept the Tharsis this whole time. He’s been fighting for Vers this whole time. 

But why would Count Saazbuam allow Slaine that privilege? 

“Insufficient data…” Inaho mutters. He has almost nothing on Saazbuam, and only knows about the martian aristocracy from Seylum and Slaine, both of which are extreme perspectives. 

Inaho lifts Slaine’s pendant from his neck and holds it up, looking at it with his real eye. 

Why is Slaine so angry?

“Insufficient data…”

Inaho twists the pendant in his hand, it is a familiar weight. As it should be considering how much he held it during the last year. 

This isn’t how Inaho envisioned their reunion to be like. It wasn’t supposed to be on a battlefield, after trying to kill each other. 

He was supposed to sweep Slaine into his arms, Slaine would laugh and blush and cry. They would run away, or stay and fight on the same side. They would laugh and argue and enjoy life together. There would be sweet kisses and passionate kisses. There would be standing in the rain, watching the stars, cooking together, anything they wanted to do, together. Inaho had no desire to finish school, but maybe Slaine would have wanted to. Inaho would have gone back with Slaine.

There was so much they should be doing, instead of this.

Is Slaine angry because Inaho left him?

Maybe.

Is Slaine angry because Seylum isn’t awake?

Maybe. 

Is Slaine angry because of the way he’s treated on Mars?

Maybe. 

Is Slaine refusing to come back because he’s angry?

Maybe. 

“Slaine…” 

Even with his eye, Inaho knows nothing. 

At first, Inaho thought Slaine might not want to come back because of Seylum. 

But Slaine has barely mentioned her. Inaho knows that he still cares about her, but it doesn’t seem to be his most pressing concern. Also, Inaho has devised at least 10 ways that they could bring Seylum with them, now that they have more time and information. 

But he doubts that will convince Slaine to change his mind. 

So what will make Slaine change his mind?

“Insufficient data…”

Maybe he just needs to make Slaine happy again…

-

“Have you told anyone yet?” Slaine asks hesitantly. 

“Told anyone what?” Inaho asks, without looking up. He’s sitting on Slaine’s bed, looking at his tablet. 

Slaine can’t believe that Inaho is still so attached to that stupid thing. Well, actually he can. “That you found me,” Slaine says sharply. “That you visit me!”

“No,” Inaho says. “Do you want me to?”

“No!” Slaine replies hastily. He doesn’t want the others to know. He half doesn’t even want Inaho to know. 

“Then I won’t tell them.”

Some tension leaves Slaine. He doesn’t want to endanger anyone else. He’s already putting both himself and Inaho in danger by meeting… if anyone found out… Count Maryclain and Baruohcruz would probably kill them both immediately. 

He hasn’t even told Inaho about Count Saazbuam announcing Slaine as his son… he hasn’t told anyone. He refused to talk to Harklight about it. But Slaine knows word will get around. He just wonders how long he can keep it from Inaho. He wonders how long he can avoid thinking too hard about it, about the conversation he had with Count Saazbuam. 

Slaine needs to get away from those thoughts. He stops pacing around the room and sits next to Inaho on the bed. “What are you looking at anyway?” Slaine grumbles. He fully expects to see some advanced physics or kataprakt mechanics pulled up. 

He leans over and quickly recoils in horror. “Why do you have that?!” 

Inaho smirks and Slaine growls. “Inaho!”

“Inko gave it to me.”

“Ugh! Delete it!”

“No. You look good in it,” Inaho says, further studying the picture of Slaine wearing the female school uniform. 

Inaho zooms in a little closer on the skirt. 

“Orange!!!” Slaine’s face is redder than it’s been in 19 months. “It’s not even me!”

The fact that it’s Princess Asseylum using a hologram to look like Slaine in a skirt doesn’t really help the embarrassment. It might as well be Slaine. That horrifying day was almost 2 years ago, but suddenly Slaine can remember every moment of embarrassment clearly. 

“No,” Inaho says thoughtfully. And Slaine certainly doesn’t like where that train of thought is going. Slaine quickly reaches over and swipes to the next picture. 

“That’s actually you,” Inaho points out helpfully. Slaine covers his face and groans. This picture is slightly better. At least Slaine isn’t wearing a skirt. But instead, he’s in Inaho’s slightly too tight uniform, with a very red face. 

Inaho hums appreciatively. 

Slaine can’t believe he lived through that day, just to have it all showed back to him 2 years later. 

Inaho swipes to the next picture, and Slaine laughs. Really laughs for what feels like the first time in years. 

“Maybe these pictures aren’t all bad,” Slaine says with a smile, at the picture of Inaho wearing Slaine’s too big martian uniform, staring blandly at the camera.  
Inaho smiles too, but he isn’t looking at the picture, he’s looking at Slaine. 

“I knew you would like them, Bat.”

“Whatever, Orange. Just keep going,” Slaine says, going to the next picture. They go through various pictures of the group together, everyone laughing and happy. Sometimes Inaho even has a smile on his face. 

There are plenty that make Slaine redden when Slaine is gazing at Inaho with obvious affection, while Inaho isn’t looking. 

There are even some with Inaho looking at Slaine with emotion on his face. 

“Why did she gives you so many? I only got one…” Slaine mutters, jealous, as they keep flipping. 

There are pictures where Slaine is obviously arguing with Inaho, face flushed and eyebrows furrowed, and Inaho looking very unconcerned. 

Slaine laughs a little every time they get to a new picture, and tries to place the day it was happening. 

They get to one of Inaho and Slaine sleeping, tangled around each other. 

“When did she take this?!” Slaine demands.

“I think it’s from when you were sick,” Inaho says. “You can tell because you’re all sweaty, and your nose is kind of running,” Inaho zooms in. “See?”

Slaine flushes, he doesn’t really want to see his sweaty face or runny nose in high definition. “But when did that happen?!” Slaine asks, confused. That was way before he and Inaho kissed, and he has no memory of sleeping with Inaho before then. And he definitely would have remembered that. 

“You were asleep,” Inaho says like it explains everything. At Slaine’s death glare, Inaho continues. “I accidentally fell asleep too. I left before you woke up.”

“You idiot…” Slaine mutters. How much more time could he and Inaho have had together if they had confessed earlier? Where would they be now? Would anything be different?

Next come pictures of everyone playing Pictionary. Inaho is drawing and Slaine is staring at it with a very incredulous look on his face at Inaho’s ridiculous drawing. And then Slaine’s drawing and everyone’s confused faces. 

Slaine smiles. That might be the one time they were horrible as a team. 

The next picture wipes the smile off of Slaine’s face. There are multiple, from various angles, of Inaho and Slaine both displaying matching red marks on their necks. 

Inaho is always some staring right at the camera. He looks almost proud, Slaine notes suspiciously. 

“Did you know she was taking these pictures?!”

“Of course, it was obvious.”

“Ugh!” Slaine groans and shoves Inaho’s shoulder. 

Inaho smiles, and Slaine feels so much better than he has in a long time. Going through these pictures, reliving the memories, laughing with Inaho, not fighting for once… it’s what Slaine wants. It’s all he wants, to be that carefree and happy again. 

But even then, they weren’t really carefree or happy, were they? They were still fighting… killing… Inaho almost died…twice.

And that’s why… that’s why even if they could get a semblance of the past back, Slaine wouldn’t take it. 

“We have to be careful. We can’t leave marks like that anymore. It would cause suspicion.”

Inaho’s face goes emotionless. “We can if you come back with me. We don’t have to hide.”

So that was Inaho’s motivation all along. It seems obvious in hindsight. Slaine immediately regrets bringing it up. They were having a good time. And now he’s ruined it. “Inaho…”

“Slaine,” Inaho says determinedly. “It doesn’t have to be like this. It can be like it was before. You can be happy. I can make you happy.”

And he says it with such conviction that it hurts. Slaine knows it’s true, too. He would be happy with Inaho. “If I don’t do anything, something will always tear us apart, like you almost dying! I want us to have a future! I’m doing this for us!”

“There’s going to be a battle soon.”

“I know!”

“I can’t fight against you.”

“Then don’t fight!”

“I have to.”

“Me too,” Slaine says, and knows he is going to be killing Inaho’s comrades. He is going to be Inaho’s enemy. By all accounts, Inaho should kill him. But Slaine has to. He has to. But he won’t hurt Inaho, or Inko. He can’t. He knows it isn’t fair. Just because they’re important to him, he will protect them instead of killing them. Even though the other soldiers he will kill are all important to someone too. 

This war is so subjective, it’s not fair.

If someone killed Inaho to protect someone that they loved, how could Slaine accept it? How could he not, when he’s doing the same thing?

“Inaho, I’m sorry…”

“Me too,” Inaho says, and gets up. Slaine wants to grab him, make him stay, freeze time, anything. But all he does is watch Inaho go. This is the last time he will see Inaho before battle… it shouldn’t end like this.

Right before he leaves, Inaho turns and looks at Slaine briefly, sadly. “Your war will tear us apart.”

-

Inaho changes into his space uniform and feels like he is justifiably upset. 

That meeting with Slaine did not go like it was supposed to. It had started out well, according to plan. But it didn’t work. Slaine is still with the martians, probably prepping for battle right now, just like Inaho. They should be doing it together. On the same side.

And then he left. They didn’t even say goodbye. He didn’t even kiss Slaine. That wasn’t how it was supposed to be. Those shouldn’t have been his last words to Slaine. This isn’t how anything is supposed to be. 

“I’ll meet you on the battlefield, Slaine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sorry for the delay! I was working on some other stories that consumed a lot of my writing time. I also went on a few trips and had a lot of school, the next chapter might be delayed a bit too :(
> 
> -Thanks for reading! You guys are great! :)


	26. Chapter 26

“We will enter defense airspace in 30 minutes.”

“Please launch.”

“Dioscuria II launching!” Count Saazbuam announces. Slaine readies the Tharsis. He is unwavering in what he has to do. He has no doubts or qualms about that. The only thing weighing on his mind is Inaho, and his own safety. 

If Slaine falls in battle, someone else will take over. Someone who will destroy Earth and everything Slaine cares for. Someone who doesn’t want Princess Asseylum in power. Would Saazbuam kill her if Slaine was no longer around? 

Slaine is the only one fighting for her. If Slaine dies, she will never get to see earth and Mars have peace. He and Inaho will never be free. 

So Slaine can’t die, no matter the cost. “Slaine Troyard, launching in the Tharsis.”

The hanger doors open, and all Slaine sees is empty space, and a few stray meteors from that day that started all of this. Inaho is out there somewhere, he knows. And he thinks about their last interaction. It’s painful to think about. What if something happens to one of them now? That will be how they left things… 

There should have been sweet kisses and tearful goodbyes, promises to protect each other. That’s what Slaine wanted it to be. 

But how could it ever be like that when they are fighting on opposite sides? Why can’t Inaho see why Slaine is doing this? Why does Inaho think they can just run off and leave the world to chaos? When did Slaine become the logical one and Inaho the emotional one?

Why doesn’t Inaho see that they are on the same side? That they are fighting for the same thing? Slaine just has a different method of achieving it…

Slaine moves forward, and he can see on his screen that the battle has already begun. Kataphrakts from both sides are being destroyed. 

Slaine grimaces as he sees a kataphrakt on his screen that is avoiding and returning shots with impossible accuracy. 

He’s using that eye…

At least it’s keeping him alive.

-

“Mustang 00, moving to assist,” Inaho tells Inko. His eye whirls as it calculates the angles and trajectories he needs to shoot in order to take down the martian kataphrakt facing Inko. 

Inaho directs his way through the heavy asteroids, ignoring Inko’s complaining about his recklessness. This is war, what does she expect?

“Inferring gravitational shifts. Data compensation ready,” Inaho mutters to himself. He still hasn’t seen Slaine. He programmed his kataphrakt (and eye) to be able to pick up the unique signature of the Tharsis easily. One, so that he doesn’t accidentally fire on Slaine (though, it’s not like he’d be able to land a crucial hit on him anyway). And two, so that he can keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t need help. There might be a secret three, which would be to keep the Tharsis away from Inko, Rayet and especially captain Magbaredge’s view. 

He doesn’t have enough data to predict on how they would react. Inko would probably be sympathetic. Rayet would be skeptical. Captain Magbaredge would probably take him out of battle and send him far away. 

“Pivoting via wire swing by. Returning to combat airspace,” Inaho says, as his wire latches onto a passing meteor. He grimaces at the force as he swings in the opposite direction of Inko and Rayet. He tries to predict where Slaine would be, but there are too many possibilities. The battle space is too big, too spread out. He uses his eye to calculate the projected landing zone. As he is compensating for wind speed and gravitational pull, his eye picks up a shot coming direction towards his left side. 

He barely manages to pull his kataphrakt to the right to avoid it. A different shot zooms by his left, from behind. He hadn’t even seen it, his eye too busy with other calculations, and Inaho’s mind on Slaine. 

If he hadn’t dodged right to avoid the head on shot, he would have been hit from behind. 

“Thanks, Bat,” Inaho says, as he quickly decrypts Slaine’s comm. 

“You’re an idiot, Orange,” Slaine growls. Inaho smiles. “What are you doing?!”

“Looking for you.”

Slaine groans in exasperation. “You’re not even paying attention or using your debris umbrella!”

Inko chided him for the same thing. “I don’t need it. And I am paying attention.”

“I won’t let you die because you’re being stupid!”

“Slaine… I’m sorry-”

“Fire back at me, you idiot!” Slaine yells, as more shots fly by Inaho from behind. Slaine fires an impossibly easy shot to avoid at Inaho, as Inaho hears him switch communication channels. No doubt to tell whoever is behind Inaho that Slaine is handling it. 

Inaho doesn’t even use his eye and fires a shot, which easily gets taken off course by the wind. But it looks like he was aiming for Slaine, at least. 

“You aren’t even trying,” Slaine says. “You have to at least make it look real!”

“I’m not going to try to hit you, Slaine.”

“You think that eye can beat Tharsis?” Slaine asks, and Inaho hears the challenge in his voice. 

“I don’t have enough data on either machine to answer that.”

“Then let’s make some!” Slaine says, and Inaho can hear the laughter in his voice. It Inaho gets swept up in the challenge. 

Soon, they are out in empty space, doing a strange dance with each other. They flip and dodge and fire, each trying to land a non-critical shot to the other first.

It may be even more difficult than trying to destroy a kataphrakt, Inaho decides, as he shoots, aiming to barely graze Slaine’s kataphrakt. The margin to avoid is so much bigger, and the precision it takes to aim at such specific areas is much greater. 

Inaho is actually enjoying the exercise. It is stimulating, and challenging, and he is gathering a lot of useful data in the process. Plus, he gets to listen to Slaine’s whoops and laughter as the shots fly around each other. 

“I guess your eye isn’t that great, after all,” Slaine laughs as another of Inaho’s shots misses. 

“Your predictive analysis isn’t doing much better,” Inaho counters, but he is smiling as well. Though to anyone else, it would look like he and Slaine are engaged in deadly combat. 

Which is the point. 

“You know being in this battle doesn’t even matter if we are just fake fighting ourselves the whole time,” Inaho points out. 

“Who says it’s fake?” Slaine retorts as he flips around Inaho and tries to fire a shot to the leg from behind. 

Inaho pivots around a large asteroid, blocking Slaine from his view. “I’ll wait for the moment he comes out of the rocks.”

Inaho knows Slaine will see through his plan, but Slaine doesn’t have any other option than to follow Inaho. Inaho has the advantage. 

He fires a shot, which Slaine moves to avoid, and then a second, which manages to catch on the tip of the Tharsis’s arm. 

“Looks like I win, Bat,” Inaho says. 

Inaho can hear the smile in Slaine’s voice. “Maybe this time, Orange.”

Inaho opens his mouth to say something, but a message from the Deucalion interrupts him. “Marineros base now in line of fire. No friendly units in line of fire. Main guns, fire!”

There are loud shots that Inaho can hear even this distance away. He can also see the resulting explosions, most likely the martian base. Inaho hears Slaine’s soft growl. 

“Slaine.”

“Inaho!” Inko yells through the comm. “We’ve been ordered to disengage! Come back!”

The battle isn’t over. They’re retreating to defend, having gotten their attack on the base. Slaine hasn’t said anything. What is he going to do?

“Slaine,” Inaho repeats. 

“Inaho!” Inko yells again. Inaho ignores her. Slaine’s Tharsis suddenly takes off. Inaho follows. 

-

So much happened in the span of 10 seconds. Inaho landed a hit on the Tharsis. Minor, insignificant. Marineros base was directly attacked. 

And Count Saazbuam, prompted either by seeing a shot hit Slaine, or the attack on base, contacted Slaine. “Are you all right, Slaine? Fall back.”

Slaine could see the Dioscuria II flying towards his and Inaho’s position. 

Slaine started flying back towards Saazbuam, hoping to get him away from Inaho. Hoping Inaho would fall back now that Earth’s goal had been accomplished. 

“No! I can still fight!” He frantically replies to Count Saazbuam. Let him think that Slaine is handling Inaho. 

“Don’t overdo it. The orange kataphrakt… I owe him some payback.” Saazbuam says. Slaine’s eyes harden. Did Saazbuam not remember shooting Inaho in the head? Did he not remember the way Slaine held Inaho in his arms? Did he really think Slaine would stand by and watch him try to kill Inaho?

Maybe. Saazbuam had been shot by Slaine, multiple times. He had been suffering from blood loss, and probably couldn’t think too clearly. In addition, he probably figured Inaho was nothing more than an Earth comrade to Slaine. Someone he would willingly abandon, like he did the rest of Earth, when he joined with count Saazbuam 19 months ago. 

“Inaho fall back!” Slaine yells. He can’t openly help Inaho right now. It would ruin everything. Inaho just needs to leave. 

“He would just follow me,” Inaho says coldly. He knows Slaine won’t help. “I have to fight.”

“No you don’t! I’ll keep him here!” 

“I don’t know what your goal is, Bat, but I’m not leaving.”

Slaine watches as Saazbuam races towards Inaho. Inaho fires multiple, very accurate, shots. But they all bounce off the Dioscuria’s barrier. 

“Looking for the gap in my barrier?” Saazbuam taunts. “I took the liberty of changing it’s location.”

Slaine hears Inaho’s grunt of concentration as he latches onto a meteor and pivots around Saazbuam. 

Inaho is jumping from meteor to meteor, trying to evade Saazbuam’s shots. 

“Energy joints, linked. Battle field, engaged,” Saazbuam says. “Sword drawn.”

Before Slaine can do anything, Saazbuam races forward, and cleanly slices the meteor Inaho was behind in half. 

“There is no escape,” Saazbuam says gleefully as Inaho eludes the sword further. 

Slaine doesn’t have a choice. 

“Inko!” He says desperately, hacking into her comm. 

“Slaine…?!” 

“Yes! You need to get Inaho away from our current position!”

“What?! What’s happening?! What are you-?!”

“There’s no time, Inko!”

Slaine feels a grim satisfaction as he sees a kataphrakt begin to make its way towards them. “I’ll cover you! Get away, Inaho!” Inko yells. 

“Stay back, Inko,” Inaho replies.

“No!”

“Stay there,” Inaho says firmly. Slaine hears Inko’s gasp of surprise. “Right at that position.”

Saazbuam charges towards Inaho. Inaho detaches his kick thruster and lets it fly behind Saazbuam, and that moment, he fires another impossibly accurate shot, hitting the thruster. It explodes violently behind Saazbuam. 

“The flames aren’t being sucked in!” Inko yells in surprise. “The barrier gap!” 

And she’s close enough that she can get a good shot on the spot, even without a robotic eye. 

It won’t do much damages to the Dioscuria, but it will disable the system for a few seconds. A few vital seconds. 

“Get away, both of you!” Slaine yells to them. Slaine can practically feel Inaho’s eyes narrowing. But they pivot to some debris and while Slaine hoped they would completely leave, he knew Inaho wouldn’t. 

“You won’t get away!” Saazbuam yells in frustration. “Slaine!”

Slaine doesn’t say anything as the timer on the Tharsis finally runs to zero. Shot after shot pummels into the Dioscuria. 

Saazbuam yells. 

“What’s that…?” Inko whispers. 

“A high speed debris cluster,” Inaho lies easily. “I picked up a debris cloud closing in at high speed on my 3D Doppler radar. Thanks Inko. A split second later and I would have been caught in it, too,” Inaho says with a slight edge in his voice. 

Guilt gnaws at Slaine. It’s not like he really would have let Inaho get caught in his bullet cluster. He would have willingly destroyed this whole plan if he had to. He hadn’t needed to, but it was still a close call. 

Slaine can hear Inko and Inaho arguing through Inaho’s comm. Inko must have turned her connection with Slaine off. 

“Just go back, Inko. I’ll meet you back there.”

He must convince her, because she turns and leaves. He wishes Inaho would go with her, but he knows that won’t happen. 

“Impossible!” Count Saazbuam yells. “My Dioscuria, brought down by mere debris?!”

“That wasn’t debris,” Slaine informs him. “It was bullets.”

Count Saazbuam is silent as he considers this information. Inaho is also quiet, his Orange Kataphrakt hovering a few meters away. Slaine let’s Inaho hear their conversation. There’s no point hiding it anymore. 

“I fired them off before the battle began. They were aimed so that they would swing around Earth and land at that spot right now.” 

“Slaine…?” Count Saazbuam sounds genuinely confused. 

“The trick was to disable your dimensional barrier. I was going to do it myself, but Inaho managed to do it for me.”

“Slaine!” Saazbuam says more desperately. 

“Shut up!” Slaine yells. “Did you honestly think that I would swear fealty to you? To the man who shot Princess Asseylum? Plotted her assassination? After you shot Inaho?! Did you think I would forgive you?!”

Slaine checks his display. He looks up at the Dioscuria, and at the orange kataphrakt behind it.“My second round will arrive soon. Goodbye…father.”

Count Saazbuam chuckles. “Not too shabby. What we would have expected from our son.”

Slaine’s second round hits the disabled kataphrakt. As hundreds of tiny bullets hit the barrier-less surface, it explodes. It completely blocks out his view of Inaho in the distance. And when it clears, Inaho is gone. 

-

Inaho intently watches Slaine’s face on the pirated vers broadcast. 

“On this day, I have lost my second father,” Slaine says somberly. Behind him hangs a large portrait of Count Saazbuam, surrounded by flowers and the vers flags.

It’s interesting to finally see the man’s face, Inaho decides. Considering how big of a player this man was in the whole war, and in Inaho and Slaine’s lives, it seems strange that he hadn’t known what he looked like before. 

But now he isn’t the big player in the war anymore. 

Slaine is.

It’s also interesting how Slaine calls the man his father, both now and when he killed him. What exactly was their relationship?

“He was also a great man who devoted his life to the prosperity of the vers empire.” 

Inaho notes that Slaine isn’t lying. Is he choosing his words carefully, or did Slaine actually respect the man? Or both?

Slaine lifts his downcast eyes. They harden. “I hereby announce my resolve to carry on both of my fathers’ legacies and fight for the even greater prosperity of the vers empire!”

“Lords of the vers Orbital Knights, this is no time to be squabbling with each other. As knights of the noble vers empire, should we not work hand in hand to eradicate Earth’s resistance forces? In the name of Her Imperial Highness Asseylum Vers Allusia! Let us defeat the terrans who dare defy the vers empire! Her Highness Asseylum is biding her time at Moon Base-“

He isn’t lying. He didn’t lie about a single thing, his whole speech. 

“Inaho, what’s going on?!” Inko demands. 

Before Inaho can say anything, Rayet, who is lounging on the table instead on in a seat interrupts. “All martians are the enemy,” she says, like it answers all of Inko’s questions. 

“Slaine isn’t an enemy,” Inaho says. 

“Yes, because all of my friends vow to the whole world to eradicate my planet.” 

“Inaho…?” Inko asks. 

“He’s doing what he thinks he has to,” Inaho tells her. 

“Have you talked to him?!”

Inaho figures there’s no point in keeping it a secret anymore. Slaine is the one who made a public broadcast in the first place. He couldn’t expect the Deucalion not to find out. And he had contacted Inko in the battle. “Yes. A few times.”

“A few times?! How long has this been going on?!”

Inaho calculates. “Approximately 5 days.”

“Five days?! And you didn’t tell anyone?!”

“I was trying to get him to come back.”

“And he wouldn’t?!”

“…no.”

Rayet snorts. “Of course not! Look at him! He’s in a position of power now! He can do whatever he likes! Why would he come back to the losing side?”

“That’s not-”

“Then why is he making this speech? Why did he kill his “father”?” Because he’s a martian and he will do anything to advance his own goals,” Rayet says bitterly. 

All humans will do anything to get what they want, Inaho thinks, not just martians. “Slaine is not our enemy,” Inaho repeats. 

“Whatever…” Rayet mutters. 

“What are you going to do, Inaho?” Inko asks hesitantly. 

“What do you mean?”

“I mean what are you going to do about Slaine?!”

Inaho still doesn’t really understand what she is asking. “I’m not going to fight him, if that’s what you’re saying.”

Rayet throws her hands up in the air. “Of course not!” 

“But Inaho… you might have to… we might have to….”

“No. I won’t. And Slaine won’t fight any of you either.”

“Oh?” Rayet says. “I’m sure he would gladly fight me.”

Inaho doesn’t say anything. It’s true. And after he just whitnessed Slaine murder his… father… for shooting Seylum 2 years ago, Inaho has no doubt Slaine would do the same to the girl who tried to murder Seylum as well. 

“You’re just going to let him kill our soliders?” Rayet sneers. “You’re just going to let him win?”

Inaho doesn’t know what he’s going to do. He gets what Inko was asking now. “No. I won’t fight him. But I won’t let Vers win, either.”

Rayet gives an exasperated sigh. Inko looks at him with concerned eyes. 

“He’s not the emperor, he’s not leading the war,” Inaho says. 

“Sure, not yet,” Rayet mutters. 

“Just be careful, Inaho,” Inko says sadly. “He contacted me to save you, so obviously he still cares about you…”

Inaho looks at his two friends. One with a scowl on her face, the other with slightly wet eyes. Neither of them trust Slaine. They both think he will betray them. 

Inaho looks to the face on the television. All he sees is the soft blonde hair he runs his fingers through at night, and the blue eyes that always give away how Slaine is feeling. 

He sees the boy he fell in love with 2 years ago, and is still in love with, will forever be in love with. 

They don’t see the same thing. 

-

“Milord, you must be exhausted,” Harklight says to Slaine. 

Slaine glances at Harklight and the bundle he has in his hands. Then he smiles. “Harklight, you were born into the third class, weren’t you?”

“I was. Though they were poor and of low class, my mother and father worked hard to raise me. They used every means at their disposal so that I could serve the Vers Orbital Knights. Milord Slaine, it is for that reason that I have the utmost respect for you. You, who have obtained the rank of count even though you are a terran.”

Slaine really looks at Harklight for the first time. This man saw everything Slaine did. He knew all of Slaine’s secrets. He just saw Slaine murder the man he called father so that he could advance in rank. And he admired Slaine. He supported Slaine. He believed in Slaine. He didn’t think Slaine was a monster, he could see the vision Slaine had for the world. 

In Harklight, Slaine sees everyone he needs to save. The citizens of Vers who have been mistreated their whole lives. He sees his father, consumed by hatred for the royal family. Count Saazbuam, driven by only revenge. His mother, who died when she could have been saved.

Slaine grabs the red jacket out of Harklight’s outstretched hands. And walks past him. He pauses for a moment, his back to Harklight’s. “This new era will be for people like us. Let’s begin, Harklight.”

“Yes…” Harklight says, as he follows Slaine down the hallway. Slaine throws the red jacket over his shoulders. “…Count Slaine Saazbuam Troyard!”

Slaine feels a swell of pride at the title. He made it this far. He can do this.

-

“That uniform looks good on you,” Inaho says, taking Slaine in. True, Slaine looks good in anything, but there was something about the new uniform, the way Slaine was holding himself. Red and blue aren’t necessarily complimentary colors, but somehow it all works. 

Slaine averts his eyes. Embarrassment? Shame?

They both know what he did to get that uniform. 

Inaho stands right in front of Slaine, forcing him to look him in the eyes. “Why did you do it, Slaine?”

Slaine makes a noise of frustration. “I had to! I need to protect Princess Asseylum, I need to finish the war, the right way, and for that I need-“

“Those aren’t the reasons you told him.”

Slaine tries to look away again, but Inaho puts a hand to Slaine’s face, keeping him there. 

“Fine! I wanted him dead! Is that what you want me to say?! Do you want to hear that I was going to kill him no matter what?! Even if it didn’t advance my position?! I planned to kill him from the beginning, and I did it now because you came back and he being alive put us in a dangerous position! I gained his trust, he called me his son, and I killed him. And I don’t regret it, not at all!” Slaine’s eyes are wide and angry. “He wasn’t a bad man. He was doing what he believed was right. And I agreed with him! But he shot Princess Asseylum! He shot you! And I could never forgive him.” 

Slaine rips his face away from Inaho’s hand and turns away. “You want me to admit that I’m a murderer?” he whispers. “You want me to tell you, the one person I don’t want thinking I’m a monster, that I am one? Do you want to hate me?”

“I will never hate you,” Inaho says, and gently wraps his arms around Slaine’s back. And he’s going to leave it at that, for now. 

Inaho buries his face in Slaine’s hair. He inhales the scent. He’s gotten used to the smell of Slaine’s hair. He’s gotten used to the way it tickles his face, the way it’s longer than it was two years ago. None of the differences matter, it’s still Slaine. 

Slaine turns around to face Inaho. Inaho places a tiny kiss on the corner of Slaine’s mouth. And there’s a confession in Slaine’s eyes, in the way he is gripping Inaho so tightly, in the way he rests his forehead against Inaho’s and looks into his eyes. 

“We never even got to finish our date,” Slaine mutters sadly. Inaho’s eye whirls. The stress patterns, the heaviness of the words, the inflection, they all indicate that this is something that has been bothering Slaine for a while. 

Inaho lets out a small laugh. 

Slaine rears back his head, eyes wide in surprise. 

“If we had finished it, I would have died.”

Slaine looks at Inaho in horrified confusion. 

Inaho smiles. “When I was shot, my stomach was empty. They said I would have died if my organs had been contaminated by my stomach contents.”

Slaine gapes at him.

Inaho pulls Slaine back closer to him. “We can finish it now.”

Slaine snorts. “How do you know it won’t kill you this time?”

There’s a lightness back in Slaine now, and Inaho feels hope. “I don’t, but” - he lets his eye do some calculations- “There’s only a 23% chance that it will. And that 18% of that comes from the fact that we are currently in a war, so there is a constant threat. And another 4 percent is because I am currently on an enemy base. So basically, there is only a 1% change that this will kill me.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Slaine mutters, moving his lips to Inaho’s. Their mouths move slowly and deliberately.

Inaho cups Slaine’s face in his and his thumbs trace over Slaine’s jaw line, and his finger stroke Slaine’s cheek. He vaguely wonders if it is possible that he will ever touch every inch of Slaine. He hopes so. Inaho loves every part of Slaine, and needs all of him. 

His eye subconsciously starts performing calculations on how many years it would take before it was most likely that he had touched all of Slaine. Every hair, every freckle. If Slaine knew he was performing such a calculation, he would laugh at Inaho and call him an idiot. At least he would have two years ago. 

He halts the calculation as Slaine’s hands slide slowly down his chest. Inaho’s breathe catches. 

They’re alive. They survived another battle. Slaine is here, pressed against Inaho. Alive, so alive. Slaine makes him feel alive. 

With Slaine’s tongue tracing Inaho’s bottom lip, and blonde hair soft under his hand, nothing else in the world matters. 

-

Inaho wakes up and watches the sleeping boy next to him. Slaine’s face looks calm and younger. Inaho wonders if Slaine still has nightmares. He certainly hasn’t displayed any evidence of them yet. 

Slaine’s mouth is slightly open. Slaine is breathing through his mouth. Inaho is thankful he installed a high resolution camera in his eye recently. It was theoretically so that he can capture important details to later review. But this scene is also an important detail that will need reviewing. 

Inaho gently touches Slaine’s lips, careful not to wake him. He studies Slaine’s face further (and maybe takes a few more pictures). But his gaze travels past the bed to the red jacket spread across the chair. 

Slaine has risen in the ranks, impossibly so. A few days ago, Slaine wasn’t significant in the martian culture. And now? He was an Orbital Knight. He was a Count. He was making public broadcasts to all of Vers. 

And Inaho slightly panics. 

Yesterday nothing had seemed important. Inaho just wanted to be with Slaine. He willingly ignored all the issues that were screaming in his face. 

Slaine murdered Count Saazbuam. Slaine earned his trust, was appointed his son, and then killed him. First-degree, premeditated murder. It wasn’t even in the heat of the moment, like the other times Slaine killed someone. The other time, Slaine at least expressed some sort of regret, or despair. This time there was none of that.

Rayet and Inko’s warnings come back to him. 

Inaho always knew Slaine was exceptionally smart, but this rise in power, these long-term plans, these methods…They were smart. But in a scary way.  
And now Slaine is in a position of power. The chances of Inaho getting Slaine to come back with him are becoming exponentially lower. 

Inaho had already tried everything logical to persuade Slaine. No matter Slaine’s protests, Inaho always thought Slaine would eventually come around.  
Is he really as naïve as Slaine accused? Was he being purposefully ignorant because he didn’t want to face the truth? Is he doing what Seylum does, what Inaho criticized her for?

He can’t lose Slaine. The anxiety in Inaho begins to build. 

He surges forward and presses his lips to Slaine’s sleeping, open mouth. 

Slaine wakes at the contact. He blinks sleepily and smiles. “Good morning to you, too, Orange,” he murmurs happily. “You usually just wake me up by touching me with your ice burg feet. But this is much better.” 

Slaine returns the kiss, and gently runs his hand through Inaho’s hair. 

“Slaine,” Inaho whispers into Slaine’s mouth. Inaho rubs small circles into Slaine’s back, softly traces Slaine’s shoulder blades, and gently moves over a scar on Slaine’s back. 

“Slaine, come back with me.”

Slaine slowly removes his mouth from Inaho’s. Inaho presses another quick kiss to Slaine’s mouth. He’s tried everything. He doesn’t know how to save Slaine, not even his eye can tell him how. 

This is all he has left. All he can do is say-

“I love you.” 

Inaho gently clutches Slaine’s face. He looks right into Slaine’s eyes, and hopes Slaine can’t actually see that his left one is fake, that it can’t hold emotion like his other one, that all it’s doing is collecting objective data. He puts all he can into his other eye. “I love you, Slaine.”

It’s all he can say, it’s the only way he can think of to save Slaine. 

But Slaine closes his eyes. “I can’t,” he says softly. 

And Inaho knows they’re about to have the same conversation, argument, again. And it’s not going to make a difference. 

“You can, but you won’t.”

“Inaho-”

“The war will end with or without you.”

“I don’t want it to just end! I want to fix it! People should die because they are born powerless! People shouldn’t die when they can be saved! People shouldn’t die! We shouldn’t have to constantly worry about another war! You shouldn’t have gotten shot! You shouldn’t have that eye!”

“You’re killing people,” Inaho points out, ignoring the urge to close his fake eye. “They have families, people that love them.”

Slaine backs further away from Inaho. “Only when I have to,” he whispers. “Only to protect other people. Only to prevent future killing.”

“So if I fully opposed you, would you kill me as well?”

“No!!”

“If I kept you from achieving you goal-”

“No! Inaho… stop…”

“You can’t have it both ways.”

Slaine is crying now. “I’m doing it for you, Inaho. For us.”

“Is that why you announced that you would eradicate earth’s forces?”

Slaine shakes his head in despair. “How do we know if we can change anything if we don’t try?! There is corruption on both sides! I’m just trying to fix it!”

“You don’t have to.”

“I can’t be helpless anymore! I can’t watch people I love die!” 

“I love you,” Inaho says. “And I would rather die fighting with you than against you, I would die with you by my side.”

“But I can’t let you die! I won’t let you die!” 

“Slaine…” Inaho envelops Slaine, shaking with sobs. He rests his head against Slaine’s shoulder and closes his eyes. He knows he has lost. If he was stronger, or smarter, would he have been able to save Slaine? If he was stronger, would this have never happened? 

They lay in silence forever. Slaine’s heaving breaths even out, his heartbeat slows. Inaho listens to their hearts beat in sync. 

Forever ends, and they pull back, looking into each other eyes. The pain and hurt echoes in three eyes. Inaho looks into Slaine’s eyes, and wonders if they made the biggest mistake two years ago. Wonders if they’re making the biggest mistake now. 

Slaine blinks and a tear slides down his cheek. “We would live forever, I would always be with you, if love was enough.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Slaine and Inaho keep having the same fight, but they will make some headway soon, I promise! 
> 
> -RIP Saazbuam :( I really like his character, but he had to die to advance the plot. 
> 
> -The story is following cannon pretty closely right now, but it will probably start deviating a bit in the next few chapters. 
> 
> -I have some special chapters planned, that I'm excited for, so keep reading ;)
> 
> -Thanks as always for all the great comments! I love to know people are still reading this after so long! And it's so great seeing new readers comment! You guys are the best :)


	27. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> -Super sorry for the delay! Hopefully the next chapter will be up on time :'). Thanks for reading!!

“What did the other nobles do afterwards?” Lemrina asks Slaine. Slaine and Harklight stand respectfully in front of Lemrina in her quarters, and the giant window she always seems to be by. 

“I’m told that none of them are openly expressing opposition, in Harklight’s opinion.” Slaine replies. 

“Do you also believe that, Slaine?” She questions.

“No. They are only holding their tongues for the time being, thinking it distasteful to raise objections while the count is being mourned.”

“It is an undeniable fact that Count Saazbuam’s death is a great loss to Vers.”

Slaine narrows his eyes. That statement was very carefully worded. Slaine doesn’t know if Lemrina is aware of the fact that Slaine killed Count Saazbuam himself, but she must suspect something. 

Lemrina turns to look out her window, a scowl on her face. “I am the result of an indiscretion committed on the moon, by my father Gillzeria, the second emperor. Father perished as a result of his second sin, Heaven’s fall, and the moon we now stand on was shattered. Count Saazbuam found me and offered his allegiance when I had lost my family. Although I never truly knew what he was thinking deep down…” She smirks and her somber tone disappears. “But that’s fine. It’s actually harder to trust those who have no talent for scheming.” She gives Slaine a coy look. 

She definitely knows something. 

“Like it or not, you will have to bear the brunt of their jealousy and envy, Slaine. You have inherited all of Count Saazbuam’s privileges, as well as his status of Princess Asseylum’s guardian.”

Whether or not she knows what really happened, this thinly veiled proves that she doesn’t even care. She is willing to work with Slaine and Harklight to achieve their ends. 

“I am prepared,” Slaine says, referring to a lot more than just their conversation. “But it is a grave responsibility that deserves to be envied.”

“I believe in you,” Lemrina smirks at Slaine. “That uniform looks quite good on you.”

Slaine’s respectful exterior falters. Those are the words Inaho said to him yesterday. He stares at her. 

“Do not forget,” She says sweetly. “The person you must protect is right in front of you.”

He looks at her with angry eyes, before bowing his agreement. 

Lemrina might want to pretend to be unaware to what happens behind the scenes, but this conversation full of double meanings and hidden jabs showed that she will support Slaine to his goal, and she is still willing to play a part in this. 

He knows what she wants, she told him as much. And it’s true, that her holograms, royal heritage and aldnoah activation rights will be very useful in his plight.

And while she may be manipulative and hurtful, there is no reason not to trust her. She has less room for error than Slaine does. 

Slaine look to the other two in the room. He, Harklight and Lemrina are a team now. They are in this together. He knows that there will soon be opposition from the other Orbital Knights, whether it be open or not. He will need them when that time comes, and throughout all of this.

-

Inaho arrives in Slaine’s room. Slaine is there, and immediately wraps his arms around Inaho. He nuzzles his face against Inaho’s neck. 

Inaho shoves him away. Slaine stumbles and falls on the bed, a scowl on his face. 

“I know you’re not Slaine.”

Slaine laughs. Inaho watches and waits. 

Finally, Slaine stops and throws Inaho a dirty look. The air shimmers as Slaine disappears and a young women with pink hair is left on the bed. 

They look at each other. Inaho senses that for her, this is a battle of wills. She doesn’t want to be the one to talk first. 

But Inaho could stand here all day, and he doubts she has that much time before the real Slaine comes back. Whatever her objective is, she will have to talk eventually. 

“Hello, Inaho Kaizuka,” she finally says. 

“Hello.”

“So you’re the man Slaine is willing to go to hell for.”

“So you’re the one impersonating Seylum.”

She scowls. Inaho gets the feeling it’s because of the mention of her sister more than anything else. Perhaps also the use of a nickname. “Did you figure that out yourself, or did Slaine tell you?”

“I realized she was a fake. Slaine confirmed it.”

“You saved my sister’s life multiple times, didn’t you? What a hero.”

“I didn’t do it for Seylum. I did it because this is war.”

She smirks. “Well, I hear you’re quite a genius. You must be, if you’re on Slaine’s level. I doubt Slaine would do all this for some idiot, anyway.”

Inaho doesn’t say anything. 

“Slaine trusts you a lot, to let you in here.”

Inaho doesn’t say anything.

She pouts. “Well, you figured out I wasn’t really Slaine much faster than he figured out I wasn’t you.”

This catches Inaho off guard. What was that supposed to mean? What was the implication behind that? Considering what she did as Slaine when she saw Inaho…

“Yes,” She continues. “Slaine is a very good kisser, lucky you. He was very eager.”

Inaho doesn’t blink. His eye tells him that she’s telling the truth. 

“But of course, he thought it was you.”

She’s lying…

“I only had seen a picture of you from two years ago, but I must have done a good enough job. Also, I never realized you had so little facial expression. It seems like that should have been a give-a-way…” she shrugs as if she honestly doesn’t understand it. 

“You did leave him here for over a year,” she continues. “He put on a good act, but I could hear him cry through the walls. He was heartbroken.”

She barks out a laugh. “Not even that affects you?! Do you even care about him? Is he throwing everything away for someone so cold?”

“What do you want?” Inaho asks. 

She laughs again. Inaho doesn’t see anything funny about the situation, or the ache in his chest. 

“I see it now. He tried to act like you when he wanted everyone to think he didn’t care about anything! He would say that, ‘what do you want’ to me all the time. The exact same way you just did! I could tell it wasn’t really his personality, but now I know where he got his inspiration from!” 

Inaho wonders if her sole purpose is to hurt him as much as possible. Looking at her curious, smirking face, he (and his eye) determined that it’s likely. 

“He seems more himself now,” she tells him. “Not happy. Just more open with his emotions. I guess there can only be so much emotionlessness in one place at a time.”

She turns her blue eyes, very unlike Slaine’s, towards his face. “So why are you ok with what he’s doing?”

His eye and his mind try to work out the best possible answer. If he admits he is definitely not ok with what Slaine is doing, she might take it as admission to being an enemy. If he says he’s ok with it, she might take it that he doesn’t care about Slaine. 

Silence might be the best option. But that will leave him open to more painful jabs from her. 

He is saved from answering when Slaine walks into the room. His mouth opens slightly as he looks back and forth between the girl and Inaho. “What are you doing here?” he demands angrily. 

She bats her eyes at him. “I just wanted to meet your…friend. He’s very interesting.” She smirks. “I’ll leave now, if you want. You’ll have to help me to my chair though, Slaine. He was much less receiving than you were to me.”

Slaine gets a dark look on his face as he lifts her from the bed and carries her to a wheelchair Inaho had previously missed. Inaho uses his eye to try to determine what is wrong with he, but nothing obvious comes back. Maybe some kind of neural disease? 

She leaves the room with a smile and wink, and Inaho is left looking at Slaine. 

There are unpleasant feelings and thoughts going through his mind. He can’t readily identify all of them. All he knows is that girl left an unpleasant taste in his mouth. 

“Who was she?” Inaho demands. 

Slaine mutters. “That was Princess Lemrina. I’m not sure how she got in here… or how she knew you’d be here…”

“She must be Seylum’s sister. But Seylum never mentioned one, and it seems like something she would have. So she must not know that she exists.”

“…Yes.”

“She’s irritating. I don’t like her.”

Slaine laughs. “Someone actually managed to have an effect on Inaho Kaizuka?”

Inaho frowns. Usually Slaine’s laughter would be reason to smile, but even though Princess Lemrina is gone, her words linger in Inaho’s mind. Who was this girl who could become anyone? She is who Slaine is spending his time up here with?

Inaho lightly sighs as Slaine hugs him, and embraces him back. He tries to let everything she said leave his head. She is devastatingly cunning, he can tell. She had a purpose in coming here. 

But Inaho also had a purpose in coming here. He can deal with her, and these feelings, later. He grips Slaine tighter. “The Deucalion is being called back to Earth.”

Slaine’s grip loosens and he pulls away slightly, his face looks like he had been struck. “You’re going. Back to Earth.”

“Yes.”

Inaho’s eye can pick up on the rising anxiety in Slaine as he continues to pull further away from Inaho. 

“Slaine,” Inaho says, letting Slaine move away, but not completely releasing him. “I won’t leave you again.”

“You say that…! But!”

“You can always-”

“Don’t say it. You don’t know how badly I want to go back to Earth… to go back with you…” Slaine says, tears in his eyes. “I want to go so much. So don’t ask me, please don’t give me that choice.”

Inaho looks at Slaine sadly. “This is not me leaving you.”

Slaine sniffs. “We’re going to be a million miles apart.”

“It’s actually only approximately twenty four hundred thousand miles.”

“Of course you know that.”

Inaho smiles and rests his cheek against Slaine’s. “It doesn’t matter how far it is. I’ll be with you.”

Slaine falls back into Inaho’s arms. “Ugh! Orange! Why does it have to be like this?”

“I don’t know.”

Slaine buries his face in Inaho’ hair. “I’m sorry…” he whispers. Inaho doesn’t know if he means for their fight yesterday, letting Lemrina find him, or not leaving with him. He decides to take it for all. 

Inaho isn’t particularly upset about going back to Earth. It won’t change anything for him and Slaine. Not really. 

But he predicted that Slaine would react negatively. Because he doesn’t fully trust Inaho to stay with him? Because he doesn’t want to be left alone again? Because he’s jealous that Inaho gets to go back (without him)?

As they say goodbye, Slaine gently reaches out and brushes Inaho’s cheek. Inaho can see the pain and fear in Slaine’s eyes, and wonders if they will ever stop hurting each other.

-

Yuki remembers every vivid detail of Inaho’s accident and recovery. 

Finding his body, blood everywhere, carrying it back to the Deucalion, not sure if he would make it, was probably the most horrifying thing she ever had to do. Her hands were sticky with his blood (the shower she took afterwards was devastating as she scrubbed her brother’s dries blood off of her) as she tried not to look at his ruined face. 

There was so much blood, but she could still tell that he had been shot in the face. She didn’t have time to dwell on it during the ordeal, because he living was much more important than him looking normal. But after the doctors told her he would survive (in a coma for an indefinite amount of time), she couldn’t stop envisioning what his face would look like under that bandage that covered half his face. 

They told her that they couldn’t save his eye, and she cried for that eye. She used to hate how calm and empty Inaho’s eyes always looked, but she wished she could have looked in it one last time. Seen him smile with it, seen the rare fondness when he looked at her. 

She sat with him every day, even though he remained quiet and unresponsive (It’s not that different from his usual self, she tearfully joked to the doctors).  
When she felt a tugging on her sleeve, and opened her eyes to see one of Nao’s eyes open and looking at her, she started crying. 

“Where is he…?” Inaho whispered, voice rough from no use. 

And the tears flowed harder as she gently embraced her little brother. Those were his first words… after five months… was his unconscious brain thinking of him this whole time?

Slaine and the princess had disappeared. No one had any record or idea of what happened. They knew Asseylum had been shot, by the blood splatters on Inaho’s face, and the way it activated the aldnoah drive. 

But what really happened was a mystery. They were both assumed dead. 

But then the Princess made a reappearance on Mars, promoting war. Yuki didn’t know what to think. Still, no word of Slaine Troyard. 

Yuki had never had the opportunity to really talk and get to know Slaine on a deeper level. She regrets that now (it seems like she has so many regrets). She foolishly thought that she would have more time, especially since him and Nao only confessed two days before everything happened! She didn’t want to scare him by already giving him a big sister talk! 

But now she desperately wants to know the boy who changed her brother for the better. 

She had always worried about Nao. He was so strange… he never expressed like or dislike for anything. He was all Yuki had left after their parents death. And she loved him more than anything in the world. She would do anything for him. 

But she also constantly wondered if Nao loved her, or even cared about her. He just seemed so cold, so distant. 

What was wrong with him? Was he incapable of love, emotions? Was she not good enough? Did he not love her?

What kind of sister secretly wonders if her baby brother is a monster like that?

She eventually decided that Nao just shows his love in different ways than normal people. She knew he really did love her, but there was always that nagging doubt. 

But it was completely different with Slaine. It was so obvious. He was so obvious. He had real emotions and he kind of actually showed them! It was like a miracle.  
She had to admit that she was slightly (a lot) jealous of this boy who so openly got Nao’s affections, while she, his sister, had to struggle her whole life to try to figure it out. 

But mostly she was so happy. Even though she knew Nao had feelings and emotions, she worried that he wouldn’t ever find love. Which would be fine, if he really didn’t want it. And it seemed like he could care less about it, his true love was information. 

But still, a good sister doesn’t want her brother to be alone forever with his tablet. And it really seemed like it was heading down that path. He was becoming increasingly detached to people, increasingly attached to books and the internet. She used to encourage (force) Nao to go out with his friends, but recently he had been resisting even that more and more. 

But Slaine brought Inaho back from that. 

Slaine made him human. 

She saw the laughter in his eyes, the smile on his lips, the way he would actually seek out human contact with Slaine. It was bizarre to see! 

She saw the way Inaho joked with Slaine, the way they played, and talked (and later, she saw the hickies).

It was everything she had ever wanted for her brother. 

Nao’s words broke her heart. 

Why couldn’t he have found somebody after the war was over? Somebody that wasn’t even involved in the war! Why did it have to happen like this? Why did his life have to be so hard?

She cried and held him. More for herself than him. He was as dry eyed as ever. 

He had lightly touched the bandaged side of his face, but didn’t do anything else. No panicking, no questions, no nothing. He simply touched it and accepted it like the fact that half his face was destroyed was perfectly fine and normal. 

He immediately began questioning Yuki about Slaine. 

“I don’t know, Nao!” She told him sadly. “Nobody knows anything!”

He explained to her what happened in the moments before he was shot. It answered some questions, but no one could answer the one Inaho wanted to know.  
When the doctors finally removed the bandage (on Inaho’s request) Yuki couldn’t contain her gasp. Even after so long, his face was a horrible mess of scars and bruising around his eye. Which no longer existed. 

Inaho didn’t even flinch, just asked for it to be re-bandaged. 

He put himself through long days of research and recovery. Yuki worried about him, but he was making good progress, and seemed healthy enough. He hadn’t fallen into a depression over Slaine, which is what she was most concerned about.

But she soon found out why he was so active and not devastated. 

“I am receiving an optical implant,” he told her. “It’s an experimental prototype, but it should return the semblance of vision in my left eye. In order to find Slaine I need to be able to return to the war, and for that I cannot be handicapped.”

“You… think he’s alive….” She asked sadly. Slaine was most likely dead. 

“I know he’s alive.”

“Nao…”

“Thank you for supporting me all this time, Yuki. But I have to do this.”

She fought the idea, especially once she learned that there were risks associated with this fake eye. But Nao fought harder, and won in the end. 

Really, she didn’t know what he would do if he had accepted that Slaine was dead. He being alive is what kept Nao going. So she didn’t want to crush that hope.

But she knew it would be destroyed eventually. She just hoped Nao wasn’t destroyed with it. 

The surgery happened, and she was shocked at how normal Nao looked afterwards. He looked like his old self. 

“Minor cosmetic plastic surgery was also performed in order to minimize the effects of the wound and surgery,” Nao explained to her. She wondered if it was procedural, or if he had specifically requested it. 

Nao was always a fast learner. He could pick something up in half the time his classmates could. He excelled in the kataphrakt training while others struggled, he understood complex concepts the first time, he never had to spend a lot of time trying to master something. 

Maybe that’s why when his recovery after the surgery did not happen fast, he became irritable. He was a genius in many ways, but no matter how smart he was, he could not force his body to heal. He could not force his mind to adapt to the machine in his head. 

Just because he was a fast learner, he couldn’t accelerate the therapy and work required to get his body back in the condition he wanted. 

She could see the anger and frustration in everything he did. She wondered if she tried to tell him again that Slaine was probably dead, if his unrealistic urgency would go away. 

But after particularly bad days, he would tell her “He’s waiting for me,” as if it explained everything in the world. 

He would apologize for snapping at her, or for being moody, and then be back at it the next day. It seemed like a never ending cycle.

She started hearing him muttering to himself. She didn’t know what to think of it at first. Was he going crazy? Was the pressure having an effect on him?

“Where is he?”  
“How much longer?”  
“Calculate progress.”

And she realized he wasn’t crazy, he was talking to the machine in his eye. 

She didn’t know which was worse. 

It creeped her out. Especially since Nao was always so analytical and bad at showing his emotions, she worried that this eye would only worsen that. 

She also wondered if his eye was giving him answers. 

She never really got to find out either answer, since he left as soon as he was able. She fought that too, of course. But Nao was always good at getting what he wanted. And he really wanted this. 

And then it was deemed that she was apparently ‘pestering’ the people in charge, and she was not allowed to be stationed with Nao on the Deucalion. They said she would hinder him in anything he tried to do. So Nao got to go back to the heart of danger with a robot eye and she was stuck here in the middle of nowhere unable to protect him. 

So much has happened in the small time that Nao has been gone.

What is really happening? How is Nao handling it?

The Deucalion is coming back here. They are to act as its escorts. 

Slaine is alive. 

Slaine is their enemy. 

Nao is coming back. 

Whatever is happening isn’t good for Nao. For anyone. 

She doesn’t know how he’s going to handle this situation, but she knows that there’s no good outcome. 

She fills her tea with alcohol and drinks deeply, not caring about the looks Marito and the captain give her. She doesn’t want to see her baby brother in pain again. 

-

Count Mazuurek stares up at the two angry counts on the screen.

“To think he named some nobody as his successor, only to die an untimely death afterwards,” Count Barouhcruz says. “Count Saazbuam had terrible luck.”

“Perhaps it was comeuppance for his folly,” Count Marylcian suggests. Mazuurek finds this whole conversation distasteful. Count Saazbuam wasn’t the nicest person, but he was respectful, intelligent and he was a good protector for Princess Asseylum. He didn’t spend his time gossiping about other counts.  
Besides, he doesn’t know why they called him to tell him all this? It’s not like he’s a frequent contact for them.

“He may have been caught off guard and killed.”

This makes Mazuurek’s eyes widen. “Are you suggesting that Count Saazbuam was betrayed?!”

Mazuurek values loyalty, honesty. Just thinking that someone would kill Count Saazbuam… it upsets him deeply. 

“Enough,” Count Barouhcruz snaps. “Without any hard evidence, it will sound like nothing more than idle gossip.”

Count Mazuurek calms down. Of course, that’s all this is. These two counts love causing strife. That’s one of the reasons Mazuurek prefers to stay in his landing castle, rather than in the company of other counts. 

However, watching the two interact, he wonders if the rumors of their relationship are true. Even he can’t resist the pull of some gossip. 

They do seem to always be in each other’s company. 

But if there is a relationship there, Mazuurek isn’t sure it’s a good thing. He genuinely hopes for their happiness, but it seems that what drew them together was their hatred and prejudice. A relationship, in his opinion, should make both people better versions of themselves. But with these two, it seems to have done the opposite, with them feeding off the others’ animosity. 

“Whatever the case,” Count Maylcian says. “The dignity of all knights is at stake! We mustn’t allow him to continue to do as he pleases!”

Are they talking about Slaine Troyard? 

The more they talk, the more Mazuurek is convinced they are just full of unfounded hatred. Slaine Troyard was always respectful, kind, and cared for the princess. He was Count Saazbuam’s ward, and later his son. Mazuurek couldn’t imagine Slaine Troyard killing Saazbuam. And he doesn’t imagine Slaine Troyard has any malicious intent for the orbital knights. 

The stop their arguing, and both turn to Mazuurek. 

“Count Mazuurek, I am aware you go out of your way to avoid destructive acts of aggression, because your priority is on seizing Earth’s resources.”

That’s true. He does value Earth’s resources highly. What’s the point of this whole war, if Earth is left in ruins? They will be no better off than where they started. But he also does not know if he fully believes in this war yet. 

“No, I am not criticizing you for taking such a position. However, now is the time to press on with an invasion of earth, by force if necessary!” Count Barouhcruz says.

“If this continues, the authority of the knight order known at the 37 clans will decline further,” Count Marylcian adds. 

They start talking seriously, and Mazuurek starts taking them seriously, and then they say something like that. This is still about Slaine Troyard? Where does this hatred come from? Because he is terran? Are they not trying to conquer earth and essentially become terrans themselves? 

They seem paranoid and foolish for putting so much on the boy. 

“This calls for a faction that will set aside their power struggle and work together. What are your thoughts Count Mazuurek?”

He has always wanted the orbital knights to stop being so concentrated on one upping the other. The point, he thought, of the orbital knights was to work together for the good of Vers. He was sorely disappointed when he realized they were more concerned with gossip, and who won the most glory from battle. 

Maybe this war is the chance to finally unite them. For them to finally work together for the greater good. It could completely revolutionize the Orbital Knights. It was already happening, judging by the fact that Counts Barouhcruz and Marylcian contacted him. They had never been comrades before, so this could be just the beginning. 

He tells them his thoughts on the subject.

-

Slaine smirks lightly as he walks down the corridor with Harklight. “It is a poor knight indeed, who slays one who defies him.”

He smiles because he knows the orbital knights do not plan on letting him keep this position. He smiles because Lemrina told Inaho who knows what. He smiles because Princess Asseylum shows no more signs of waking than she has for the past 2 years. 

He smiles because Inaho is leaving him again. 

He’s out of tears and longing and pain. He just feels numb at what is happening. He set himself on this path, this is all his doing. He only has himself to blame for everything.

He smiles because he’s he has to end this war as soon as possible, so all of this can stop happening. 

“The key is to show yourself to be so superior that they will not defy you in the first place.”

“Wise words, Milord,” Harklight says solemnly. 

“Count Saazbuam said them.”

He smiles because he could never forgive Count Saazbaum.

He smiles because he killed someone who respected, trusted, and might have cared for him. 

He ignores Harklight’s noise of surprise. Harklight probably thinks Slaine to be a better man than he really is. Slaine feels no regret for what he did. 

His face hardens. “Which is why I must give them a reminder.”

-

“Thank you for luring it into position, Lt. Marito,” Inaho says. He feels slightly guilty from the lack of guilt over using the man, and his own sister, as bait. It surprises him. Two years ago he never would have thought twice about it. This is war, there are no rules, no place for morality. But now, something nags at him. Would he have used Slaine in that way? 

Definitely not. 

So why was using Lt. Marito any different? Because he was already fighting? Because he would have died anyway? Because he wasn’t Slaine?

“A laser transmission…?” Yuki says, and Inaho hears her confusion. Again, the feeling nags at him. Yuki thought that she might die. And Inaho had let her, so that he could get a shot. It was all to save her, of course, but was there a different way to save her? A way that didn’t involve sacrificing her?

(Was there a different way to save Slaine?)

“Wait a second, Yuki,” Inaho says. 

Yuki gasps. “Nao?!”

Inaho pushes any feelings away. They have no place in this war. “Its gravity waves are ripples that propagate outward horizontally. The gravity waves that propagate vertically are integrated and lose their effect.”

He is sitting in his kataphrakt, attached to the outside of the Deucalion, still in space, looking downwards towards earth. It’s only with help from his kat and his eye that he has an idea of what is going on down on earth. 

His eye whirls. “Correcting for errors…”

The Deucalion locks on to the position that his eye calculates. He watches at the missile flies downwards, breaking into earth’s atmosphere. 

It hits exactly where he wanted it to. 

What would they have done without his eye…?

The Deucalion would not have been able to help effectively without it. 

It doesn’t matter. For as much as he discusses alternate universes with Slaine, he fully believes that this universe is the only one that he can prove, and therefore is the only one that matters. If there is a universe where he has both real eyes, and Yuki dies, he doesn’t think about it. 

What ifs have no use in life. They are pointless, because the past cannot be changed. 

(What if he hadn’t left Slaine?)

They are set for reentry to earth in 10 minutes. When he left on the Deucalion, he never considered that he would come back to Earth without Slaine. He would have rescued Slaine or died trying. But Slaine didn’t need or want Inaho to rescue him. So now he is on the ship he fell in love with Slaine in, heading back to Earth where he wanted to spend his life with Slaine, without Slaine. 

“We are no longer in the line of fire,” Inaho tells the team on the ground. “Looks like this is all the help we can give you.”

“No, that was plenty, Kaizuka’s brother,” Lt. Marito says. 

Good. Inaho is satisfied that he did enough so that the team would be able to survive. 

He is used to doing the bare minimum necessary to achieve his goals. That is the way to make the most effective use of time and resources. 

(Did he not try hard enough to save Slaine?)

-

“Radar return detected!” The crewman shouts.

“No IFF signal detected…” The other says hesitantly. “Sorry sir! We didn’t pick it up right away because it was mixed in with all the debris.”

The captain stares at the screen. It was supposed to be a routine job, monitoring shuttles entering the base and trash cleanup from the battle with the martians. The goings about Trident base were typically dull, when a battle wasn’t going on. And space stopped being a novelty after the first week. All it is debris from a destroyed moon and darkness. 

“Just one unit?” He demands. “What do they hope to do with one unit?!”

He signals the defense systems to go off. Was it some sort of suicide bomber? Still, they wouldn’t be able to make it far enough to Trident base to do any damage.

“It’s now 10km away!”

The captain watches in horror as the enemy dodges all the explosions of shots. 

Dread settles in. 

It’s the kataphrakt that has been destroying all his men without taking a hit. It’s the kataphrakt that seems to know exactly where to shoot to land a shot. 

It had single handedly taken out more of his men than the rest of the martian army combined. Maybe that was an exaggeration, but not by much. 

He hates that kataphrakt, for the innocent men that will never return to their families. 

He hates it because it’s unstoppable, and devastating. 

“I can’t believe it… how can it fly through such dense debris at that speed?!” He grits his teeth. “Launch kataphrakt platoons now!” He shouts, knowing he is sending those men to their deaths. But what choice does he have? He can’t let it reach Trident base.

He watches as his men are all exploding balls of fire before they can even fire a shot. He watches the screen in grim resignation. 

Maybe if they had that boy with the robotic eye. The tactical genius. The one who can destroy martian kataphrakts. 

He might be the only person capable of stopping this monster. His last hope is that one day the two will face off, and the martian kataphrakt will get what it deserves, and his men will be avenged. 

-

Yuki high fives Inko as she, Nina and calm run up to her. She had never really had time for friends of her own, having to take care of Nao and the house all by herself.

But Nao turned out to be the one to take care of her, instead of the other way around. It still stung a little bit. 

But the age difference between her and Nao’s friends wasn’t that big, and considering she was the one that more often than not had to force Nao to see them, she had bonded with them as well. 

“Long time no see, Yuki!” Nina says happily.

“You up and left us all of a sudden!” Inko says. “You scared us!”

Yuki smiles embarrassedly. “Sorry. Chalk it up to grown up reasons.”

Like being banned from the ship. 

“We’ll be able to fight together again, right?” Nina asks. 

Yuki hates how happily Nina asks that question. They shouldn’t be fighting in the war in the first place, let alone act excited about fighting again. She secretly wonders if it’s her fault that Nao and everyone was dragged into this. She not so secretly blames herself. And she’s not going to talk about fighting with them. Not when she plans on trying to get them, along with Nao, removed from the front lines. “So, I hear you guys have been busy!” She says, changing the subject.

“Yes!”

“You haven’t changed a bit, Yuki!”

That’s not true. She watched her little brother fall in love, get shot, recover and go back to war. She has definitely changed. But at least they can’t see that.  
She hears footsteps and her mood immediately lightens further. “Rayet!” She exclaims as the girl walks into view. “So, you’re liking it here?”

“It’s ok,” She says flatly, but her smile gives away her true feelings.

Yuki has a soft spot for Rayet. She is the only one that doesn’t make Yuki feel responsible for ruining their life. She talked a lot with Rayet when she was arrested on the Deucalion. The girl acted like she hated talking to Yuki, but eventually she opened up, and Yuki knew she liked it. 

They both had dead parents, killed by martians. It was nice to be able to open up and talk to someone that understood. Plus, it was nice to talk to another girl, no matter how grouchy she liked to appear. 

Yuki was extremely pleased when Rayet was allowed to go free after the incident at the UFE HQ. She gave Rayet the option to stay in her and Nao’s house, while she helped Nao recover, as well as her other military duties. Rayet grumbled about it, but ultimately accepted at Yuki’s insistence. 

It was a comfort to go home once in a while, and have someone there to listen to her, or to talk to and take her mind off of everything. Rayet was blunt and never sugar coated anything, which Yuki appreciated. It reminded her of Nao in a way. 

Rayet didn’t stay long, she left to go back to the Deucalion with Nina, Calm and Inko. Yuki begged and pleaded for her not to, but she was dead set.  
She had so much determination. And a reason to fight. Yuki knew she would wither away with hatred if she stayed and did nothing, so she supported her in the end. 

(The others would be perfectly fine if they didn’t fight. They had no unresolved hatred.)

Yuki missed their conversations when she was gone, and found time to worry about her, along with everything else. 

“I’m glad,” Yuki says softly. 

“Inaho is doing fine, too!” Inko says. 

Yuki hesitates. What does that mean? How could he be fine? “… It seemed that way…”

“Did you see him already?” Nina asks, hugging Inko from behind. 

“He just said hello over the radio.” If saying ‘wait’ counts as hello. Which Yuki doesn’t think it should. “Maybe he thinks that’s enough.”

She shouldn’t expect Inaho to think that Yuki would want to see him. She shouldn’t expect Inaho to want to see her. He never seemed to care about that kind of thing. 

But still, she wanted her little brother to run and hug her after being at war for a month. Even if she knew that would never happen. 

-

“Here is video of the attack,” the technician shows them. “It waited until the shuttles had entered the docking bay and then set off all the munitions they were carrying at once.”

“Talk about lousy timing…”

Inaho keeps his mouth shut. Watching the footage, it is painfully obvious who was behind the attack on Trident base. 

Judging by Captain Magbaredge’s face, and her hand poised considering on her chin, she has an idea as well. She spent enough time with Slaine to know his style, and what his kataphrakt was capable of.

“No, I think it was planned,” Inaho finally says.

“Planned?” Captain Magbaredge asks coolly. Inaho turns his eyes to hers, challenging. 

She had already figured out as much. And soon the others would too. She also knew who, which was the more dangerous part. Inaho figured he would raise suspicion by not saying anything. He was called into this meeting for a reason. His input is valued and expected. If they deduce it themselves, and then take into account his silence, it is an easy guess as to who the perpetrator is. This way he can take control of the conversation. 

“There was just a major battle there, so it was a safe bet that the shuttles would come,” Inaho says, making it sound like anyone could figure it out. “They probably checked to make sure the base’s reinforcements had left. They stood a good chance of winning, so they attacked with just one unit.”

He pauses and looks around the room. Everyone’s eyes are on him. Good. They believe him. It’s not like it’s a lie anyway. That is probably exactly what Slaine did.

But by making it sound like it was orcastrated by higher ups, and they sent a signal unit, it will shift the blame, or suspicion, off of Slaine. 

“But the service details of munitations shuttles are supposed to be top secret,” XO Mizusaki says hesitantly.

“All they really do is stuff like change their registry numbers and alter supply routes,” Inaho explains. “You’d be able to sniff them out with careful crypto analysis and data sifting.”

He feels Captain Magbaredge’s eyes on him. She might want to challenge him, but she probably won’t. Not here, not now.

“But…” XO Mizusaki says.

“The martian government is obviously capable of that,” Inaho finishes. 

He notes that everyone looks convinced, disconcerted. Except Captain Magbaredge. But he never planned on being able to deceive her. 

Let them think it was another planned attack by the government. Slaine wasn’t their enemy. He wouldn’t let them make Slaine their enemy. 

Inaho leaves the meeting room and thinks grimly about how smart Slaine’s attack was. He thinks grimly about how much he loves how smart Slaine is. 

He thinks grimly about how he just mislead his government to protect someone who just attacked their base, killed their soldiers, and is their enemy. 

He takes his eye cover out of his harness and puts it on. He repays the downloaded footage of the attack. He is already sure, but he needs to be positive. 

He zooms in and enhances the white blur that is destroying shuttles and attacking Trident Base. It is very obviously the Tharsis.

“Slaine…” he mutters. 

It had never been real to Inaho before this moment that he was on the opposite side of Slaine. That he was fighting against Slaine. Slaine, by all means, is his enemy. 

But he can see clearly now. He was being purposefully ignorant. 

He flips the cover off, and puts it away. He begins down the hallway of the base on Earth. It is similar to the UFE HQ that they had stayed in. That they first kissed in. 

Inaho stops and covers his left eye lightly. “I guess I have no choice.”


	28. Chapter 28

“Brilliantly done, Milard Slaine,” Harklight says. Slaine feels like growling at him.

He keeps his face stoic as they float through the docking bay, amongst all the whispers of the crew and present counts. 

Good. Let them talk.

That’s why he had to do this. 

The crew begins to raise their hands in salute to him. Two counts slowly raise their hands as well.

Slaine looks coldly ahead. He doesn’t want their respect, not at the cost. They aren’t who he is trying to fix the world for. But their respect is what he needs, in order to do it. 

“Harklight, we’re returning to the moon.”

-

“That fiend…” Count Marylcian snarls, watching the crew salute Slaine Troyard.

“You mustn’t overlook his results,” Count Barouhcruz says. “He did what he set out to do, and he did it brilliantly. Causes always rally around the powerful. We can’t brand him a traitor, not now.”

But that doesn’t mean they can’t find a way to prove Slaine Troyard’s true nature in the future. 

-

It’s been over 24 hours since Slaine Troyard’s farce of loyalty. It’s been over 36 hours since Count Mazuurek went to Earth to battle the terrans. 

“Has there been any contact with Count Mazuurek since then?” Count Barouhcruz asks Count Marylcian over the telescreen. 

“No. However, his landing castle is still functional,” Marylcian starts playing with his hair again. Count Barouhcruz wants to slap his hand away, but he’s miles away in his own landing castle. “That means Count Mazuurek is still alive.” He finishes. Like Count Barouhcruz hadn’t figured that out himself. He scowls. 

Count Marylcian looks down thoughtfully, and thankfully releases his hair. “Perhaps he is lying low and waiting for an opening. Or perhaps-”

“Perhaps he has been taken prisoner by the terrans,” Barouhcruz interrupts coldly. This is no time for misplaced optimism. 

“Either way, it would be prudent to assume that Count Mazuurek will not return,” Count Marylcian says, sweat beading on his forehead. He meets Barouhcruz’s eyes grimly. “In which case, there is but one course of action,” he mutters, looking away.

Count Barouhcruz inhales. “What are you…?!”

He looks up, eyes filled with hatred. “I cannot allow the earthborn stray to run lose any longer.”

-

Inaho looks into cold blue eyes, wishing everything was different. 

He didn’t mean to come here to fight. He doesn’t know what he came here to do. 

But that is what it degraded to. Inaho demanding that Slaine stop. Slaine yelling. 

“Why do you think you’re doing the right thing? You can’t change anything.” Inaho says. He is at least five feet away from Slaine’s angry face, but the distance feels much longer. 

“I don’t know that unless I try! Why can’t you see?! Why can’t you believe in me! Lemrina and Harklight do!”

Inaho feels an unfamiliar pang go through him. Slaine has vaguely mentioned Harklight before. And Inaho knows Lemrina too well. They’re the people that Slaine spends all of his time with. They’re who Slaine has chosen to ally himself with, instead of Inaho. “Then they are ignorant. Fighting a war isn’t going to achieve peace. Stop this war, and Earth and Vers can make a peace agreement.”

“No! There will always be war that way! Peace can only happen when the whole world is unified. As long as there are two separate nations, there will always be war. You know that! And I can’t stand by as Vers continues to give power to only a few and let its citizens die!”

“You’re content to let earth soldiers, terran citizens, die. You’re content to wage war against the earth you are trying to save.”

“Inaho!”

“We should have ran away from this war two years ago like you said,” Inaho says coldly. “You should have never came here.”

Angry tears are visible in Slaine’s eyes. “You’re the one who made me leave! You’re the one who left me here alone for two years!”

“Because you saved Count Saazbuam and he shot me. Just for you to kill him later anyway.”

Slaine’s eyes widen in horror at Inaho’s accusation. 

They can’t escape that day. No matter how far they come, it’s always there, looming over them. It holds so much hurt, that should have lessened over time, but somehow didn’t.

“And you weren’t alone. You had Lemrina to comfort you.”

“What are you talking about?!”

“You kissed her.”

“What are you talking about?!” But Inaho sees the realization cross Slaine’s face. “Inaho, that didn’t mean anything…”

Inaho knows he’s being petty, and now is not the right time to bring that up, but he’s angry and he’s hurt and the memory of Lemrina’s taunts sting at him.   
Inaho shrugs. “She doesn’t have a fake eye. She believes in your pointless quest. She isn’t an emotionless robot.”

Slaine growls. “Orange!” 

Slaine takes a step towards him, but Inaho steps back, towards his exit. 

“Go ahead,” Inaho says, turning to leave. “Throw our life away.”

“Inaho,” Slaine sobs. “I’m trying to save our life!” he reaches for Inaho, but Inaho slips away.

-

Everything is crazy, but she has to keep a calm head. 

This is war, of course everything is going to be crazy. 

Still, Captain Magbaregde’s training never prepared her for her best soldier (there best hope?) being an 18 year old boy. With a mechanical eye. 

It definitely never prepared her for said boy’s ex-boyfriend being their main adversary. 

Though, she supposes that Slaine Troyard probably isn’t Inaho Kaizuka’s ex-boyfriend. 

Even though they are fighting on opposite sides of the war. 

She rubs her temples. There’s not enough asprin in the world for this situation. 

If it was anyone else, she would have forcibly removed them from battle. Or even had them investigated for treason. 

But it’s Inaho Kaizuka, and earth needs him. 

Which basically means he gets whatever he wants. 

Captain Magbaredge scowls. She doesn’t like it. The outcome of the war shouldn’t be in the hands of some hormonal teenager hung up on his first love. 

She grimaces. If she really thought that is what Inaho was, she probably would be desperately looking for another solution. But she trusts Inaho Kaizuka. And she doesn’t think he would risk everything for some crush. He is perfectly capable (more than perfectly, with that eye) of weighing the consequences of his actions. If he wants to protect Slaine Troyard, let him. As long as Inaho is still fighting on their side, it doesn’t matter who takes the blame for the attack. 

But it does miff her that he’s so important and that he knows it. She’s sure that when he requested to interrogate the martian prisoner, he had no worries that he would be denied. 

She’s not sure how deep Inaho’s connection with Slaine is currently, but she suspects that they have been in contact. He reacted with little emotion, even for him, at the broadcasted video of Slaine (which was the first time he was confirmed alive to the Deucalion). 

She doesn’t have time or energy for this Romeo-Juliet style romance that Inaho is trying to pull off. It’s ridiculous. They are in a war, doesn’t he know there is more at stake?

But what’s the point fighting if you have nothing to fight for?

-

Inaho knows the figure in the bed knows that he’s here, even though he’s pretending otherwise. His heartbeat and breathing are very alert. “How are you feeling?” He asks the captured Count. 

No response. 

“Not very well, looks like. I hear you were subjected to a full body search.”

That seems to trigger something. “I never thought I would be subjected to such primitive questioning,” The prisoner says lightly. 

“We can’t have you using a poison tooth,” Inaho points out. 

“What an outdated notion,” the figure sighs and sits up, revealing a young face and wavy hair. 

“That does seem to be your national character.”

“From a terran’s point of view, I suppose Ver’s feudal system would seem just as anachronistic.”

“If it’s a problem, change it yourselves.” These are the people who tormented Slaine for years. And surely still do. Yet, no one tries to fix it, because they are content in their power. 

The count smiles. “Spoken like someone born into a land of plenty.”

That’s a weak excuse when there is currently a terran changing things on Vers. A terran who could have chosen to return to the land of plenty. 

The smile disappears from the count’s face. “You’re like pigs who are about to die. Once you are too cold to move, it’s too late.”

“You know a lot.”

“You admit I’m right?” he asks, sounding surprised. 

“No. About pigs. Even though Princess Asseylum had never seen birds before.”

His eyes widen. “You have spoken to Princess Asseylum?”

“She spent time aboard this ship.”

He is silent a moment, before his face hardens. “I see. You are one of those who sought to exploit her, then.” He turns away. 

“It wasn’t exploitation. It was cooperation.”

He slowly turns his head back to Inaho and narrows his eyes. “Cooperation, you say?”

Ah. That word means something to the count. 

“Can you tell me one thing?”

The man gives a light laugh. “Do I look like a man who would sell out his country lightly?”

“You don’t look that way. Or sound that way.” Inaho’s eye shows him a multitude of information about the man. It isn’t all pertinent to this situation, and Inaho doesn’t have the time to carefully analyze everything. This is a logical gamble. “Which makes you the perfect man to ask.”

The man jerks in surprise. Inaho asks his question.

“Have you sword loyalty to Princess Asseylum?"

-

Slaine brings up a hologram image of an owl. He touches it softly. “There are many species of birds, as well,” He tells Eddelrittou, and switches the image to a seagull. “Big birds. Small birds. And brightly colored birds.” 

He pushes a button, and the room where Princess Asseylum is asleep fills with images of birds. Eddelrittou gasps. “They’re beautiful!”

“This is how birds fly through earth’s sky,” Slaine says. He feels like a liar. He has never seen 99% of these birds. He has never seen them fly through earth’s sky. And here he is, pretending to be an expert on Earth, when anyone could easily find the information online as he had. 

He’s from earth, but he has experienced very little. But it was so easy to take the role of Princess Asseylum’s teacher. It was his only comfort on Vers for all those years. Even though it was all a lie. He even told her incorrect information, as Inaho pointed out. 

And here he is, falling back into the familiar role, trying to lie to himself. Trying to hide in the familiar comfort of teaching Princess Asseylum, in an effort to not think about Inaho.

“Most birds fly. But there are some species of flightless birds,” he brings up a picture of a penguin. He turns towards Princess Asseylums’s cryogenic tube. “I suspect Princess Asseylum would say that she finds it sad that they cannot fly, even though they have wings.”

“She is a kind hearted person.”

“But their inability to fly does not trouble them in the least. On the contrary, the ones that should be pitied are the birds who can fly but are kept in cages.”

Slaine wonders if he is lying again. Lemrina has legs, yet she cannot walk. And she is not untroubled by it. Maybe she would rather be in a cage, if it meant she could walk. Perhaps Princess Asseylum likes her cage of ignorance. If she was set free, she would have to face the real world, full of anger and hatred. 

“Why would someone keep them in a cage?”

But nothing changes the fact that the Vers empire has kept Princess Asseylum, and Princess Lemrina, in a cage for their whole lives. A cage that has caused the world great harm and many deaths. 

Slaine touches the cold class holding Princess Asseylum. “Because they are beautiful.”

If Princess Asseylum wants to be in a cage, Slaine can make her a better one, in a better world.

-

“So you’re saying that the Princess Asseylum currently on our Moon Base is an imposter?”

“Yes.”

“If that is true, then where is the real one? Is she being held prisoner somewhere?” Count Mazuurek rubs his chin thoughtfully. “Or is there a reason she can’t show herself?”

Inaho has to be very careful here. He may be angry at Slaine. But he can't let that anger endanger him. The information he gives Count Mazuurek needs to be significant enough so that he is convinced to help, but reveals no information about Slaine. 

“Possibly both.”

Mazuurek whips his head towards Inaho. “Your left eye saw through that as well?”

“It’s an analytical engine.”

Mazuurek looks at him for a second, and then bursts out laughing. “Impossible! I am not so foolish that I would believe such a preposterous tale!”

“We’ve retrieved your kataphrakt.”

Mazuurek snorts. “The aldnoah drive was knocked offline by the force of the explosion. It will never work again.”

“You powered it down yourself. Out of fear that terrans would steal it.”

“Weren’t you listening? It stopped working after the explosion.”

Inaho’s eye shows the now familiar stress levels of a lie. “Did it now? Just as I thought, you shut it down yourself.” Count Mazuurek growls. “I will say it again. Princess Asseylum is an imposter. Princess Asseylum was shot right in front of me. By Count Saazbuam.”

Inaho hears the footsteps coming down the steps to the jail cells. His eye tells him the approximate weight of the person making the noise. It just confirms what he already knew. Inaho doesn’t stop his conversation with the count.

“Preposterous!” Count Mazuurek says. 

“Who then left with Slaine Troyard,” Inaho keeps his face as straight as possible saying Slaine’s name. He hopes he’s right about Count Mazuurek. If he’s not, or he figures out too much, then Inaho will have to kill him. “They took Princess Asseylum, who was on the verge of death, with them.”

“Count Saazbuam was celebrated as the hero who rescued Princess Asseylum!”

At least that gives Inaho some information. Count Mazuurek does not think Slaine is of any significance. Count Saazbuam orchestrated Lemrina as the fake princess. Count Saazbuam was the hero, while Slaine fell to the background. 

“He’s no hero,” Rayet says, appearing behind Inaho. “He’s the mastermind behind the plot to assassinate her.”

“Count Saazbuam is?!”

Inaho glances at Rayet. Why can she say one thing, and get a better reaction out of Count Mazuurek than he has this whole time. 

Maybe he should try looking as angry as she does. 

“Those bastards tricked my father and used him as much as they could. And then they killed him like some lowly insect!”

“You are Vers-born?”

Rayet growls. 

“I see. In any event, your father would have died sooner or later. Consider it a blessing he wasn’t branded a traitor or lynched.”

Rayet lunges at the bars. “What is that supposed to mean?! Are you saying my father deserved to be killed?!”

This has become unproductive. Inaho puts a hand on Rayet’s shoulder. “Let’s go.”

She rips it away. “I’m not done with him!”

Inaho grabs her wrist and drags her away. “Come on.”

She again rips her hand away from him. “Let go!” He expects her to turn and run back down the stairs back to the prisoner. But instead she lowers her head. “You must think I’m an idiot. That I’ll always be bound by the past. Be a prisoner to it,” She lifts her head and smiles at him. “But you are too. You’re just as trapped as I am.”

Inaho stares at her. She laughs. “I wish I could see that eye working. But you’re right. I’m just like them. All I can do is blame others. Hate them, envy them, fight them. A stupid martian!”

“You’re different.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

“I’m not!”

“You are.”

“I’m not! I’m no different! I hate martians!” She’s crying now. Inaho wonders why he suddenly has to deal with so many crying women. “I hate myself most of all!”  
Inaho’s eye has no advice on how to deal with this situation.

Rayet laughs. “Why am I telling the most emotionally stupid person in the universe this? How does Slaine handle it?”

Then she looks at him more seriously. “Why don’t you hate them? They are killing people. They abused Slaine, they took him, they made him do this. Why don’t you hate him? He betrayed you. He is your enemy. Why don’t you hate anyone?!”

“They didn’t make him do this. He didn’t betray me. He isn’t my enemy.”

She barks a laugh. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.” 

“Help me set him free.”

“Slaine doesn’t-”

“Not Slaine. The prisoner.”

“What?! Why would I do that?!” Rayet asks angrily. She narrows her eyes at him. “Why would you do that?”

“He doesn’t believe in this war. He wants peace like we do. True, his mindset is still that of an Orbital Knight, so he can’t be fully trusted. And his goals don’t align completely with ours. But he can help broker peace.”

Rayet stares at him. “Peace? There is no hope for peace anymore! Especially not with your boyfriend up there doing what he’s doing!”

“Slaine thinks there is only one way to win this war. I don’t know if there is another way, but if there is I am going to find it. That man,” Inaho gestures in the direction of the cells. “Is valuable in that way. He can help counter Slaine’s actions. But not if he’s locked up here.”

Rayet looks at him a bit longer, but then shrugs. “Fine. I don’t believe in anything you just said, of course. But if he betrays us, then I can kill him. And if he doesn’t, nothing will happen. So I’ll help you.”

-

Inaho’s eye reacts to the bright light being shone in it by absorbing the wavelengths, and telling him exactly what kind of light it is, and how bright. 

“You programmed this yourself, Inaho?” Dr. Yagari asks.

“All I did was customize the firmware that it was already running.”

Dr. Yagari turns in his chair to look at his computer screen, displaying a detailed image of Inaho’s artificial eye. “The area it’s tied into has been expanded…” he says softly, and turns back to Inaho. “How’s it feel?”

Inaho covers the eye with his hand, trying to accurately answer the question. He thinks that using his eye to analyze if he is feeling any different from months ago may defeat the purpose. “Not all that different.”

Still, Dr. Yagari looks at him concerned. “Try not to expand it any further, ok? By the time you notice it’s affecting your brain, it will already be too late.”

Inaho is glad Yuki isn’t here for this. She would demand he have it removed immediately. “Yes. I am aware of the risks.”

At that moment, the door opens and his sister walks in, with unusually good timing. “Oh, this is where you were…” she says. 

He doesn’t need his eye to tell him that she’s not very happy. “Yuki.”

She looks at the floor. “Got a minute?”

Inaho suppresses his sigh as he gets up and follows his sister to the hallway. He was done with Dr. Yagari anyway. He just needed to check how far the area had expanded. It shouldn’t be an issue. 

More realistically, he has been doing anything productive to keep his mind away from Slaine. 

He keeps running different scenarios and probabilities with his eye, but he can’t figure out what to do. 

Yuki stops walking, and stands about 5 feet in front of him. The distance seems odd, and it reminds him painfully of the distance between him and Slaine earlier.  
“Nao,” she says softly. “Why did you decide to serve aboard this ship?”

She knows why. Why is she asking that now? “What do you mean, why?”

“There’s no reason for you to fight, right? You should have just packed up and left after your injuries had healed.”

“It’s the same for you, Yuki.”

“No, it’s not! I’m a soldier!”

“There was no reason for you to become a soldier, so it’s the same.”

“It is not!” She yells. Inaho jerks in surprise. Yuki usually doesn’t raise her voice in anger. He hadn’t thought this was a serious conversation. She was just doing her usual big sister thing because it is routine. She knows why he fights, and why he’s on this ship.

But apparently this isn’t their usual conversation. 

“I regret it every day…” She says sadly. “That I made you into a solider. When I saw you that day, unconscious and covered in blood…I asked myself… ‘Why didn’t I stop you?’”

Inaho’s hand twitches. He doesn’t like Yuki’s tears. He doesn’t like the way that that same question goes through his mind more often than not. 

“I became a solider because I wanted to protect you and the world you live in. But you still…”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t stand around doing nothing.”

She meets his eyes for the first time. “It’s because of Slaine isn’t it?” It’s not a question.

He steadily meets her gaze. 

She looks down. “That boy’s not the Slaine that you remember, he’s not who you used to know. He’s now an enemy! He’s trying to conquer earth!” 

As upset as Inaho is at Slaine, as angry he is at the situation Slaine has put them in, he gets a surge of defensiveness at Yuki’s statements. He still believes that all those statements are false, despite everything.

“He’s still Slaine.”

“How could you possibly know that?!”

Inaho’s first instinct is to say because of his left eye. It had after all, seen Slaine’s lies and analyzed his actions. But that’s not true. Because even without his eye, Inaho would know that Slaine was still Slaine. 

“Because I love him.”

Yuki gasps and tears begin to flow heavily down her cheeks. 

Inaho looks down. He can’t make any excuses for Slaine. He can’t say Slaine is being forced, or threatened, or it isn’t really him. 

“I want to rescue him.”

“That’s impossible!”

Not impossible. Not yet. But the odds are rapidly decreasing. “Yuki, he saved my life. He is my life.”

Something clicks in Inaho’s mind. Something even his eye couldn’t put together. Yuki’s words, ‘I wanted to protect you and the world you live in’. Inaho’s own words, ‘I can’t stand around doing nothing’. Slaine’s words, Slaine’s actions. What Slaine has been trying to tell him all along. 

“He’s doing it for us, Yuki.”

“What are you talking about?!”

“He is trying to end the war once and for all. This same war killed our mother and father almost 20 years ago, and we thought there would be peace. But here we are, fighting again. He’s trying to make it so that we never have to fight again. Isn’t that what you want?”

“Yes! But-!”

“I might not agree with his path, or the methods he is taking to achieve his goal,” Inaho says, talking more to himself at this point. “But he’s sacrificing himself for the world. He’s trying to do the right thing. He’s brave, and selfless. More so than I am.”

Inaho suddenly thinks to the future he wants with Slaine. He doesn’t really care where they are. Maybe somewhere near a mountain, with lots of animals, he can practically see Slaine’s excited smile and bright eyes at the beautiful scenery. Somewhere with lots of stars for Slaine to look at. Inaho wonders if Slaine would want a pet. He seems like he might be a cat person. Inaho will have to investigate that hypothesis further…

But none of that matters if they go to sleep every night in fear that they will be thrown into war the next morning. He won’t see Slaine’s excited smile if they wake up in a bunker, or on a battle ship each day. All there will be is stress and fear that will slowly break them. Slaine can’t be happy if Vers still controls all of the benefits of aldnoah, and shares it with none but their royalty. They won’t be able to adopt a cat if they are constantly moving because of a looming war. 

Inaho could really care less whether they live in a cardboard box, or a giant house, as long as he is with Slaine. But Slaine wants this future, and Slaine believes in this future, and Slaine won’t stop trying. 

The future that Inaho wants only exists if Slaine exists. 

“He’s still Slaine.” Inaho looks back to Yuki, her mouth hanging open. “He’s trying to protect me and the world I live in. Same as you.”

Inaho turns, new determination with his revelation. “That’s why I have to protect him, and whatever path he takes.”

-

Lemrina enters the room in her chair and Slaine really doesn’t want to deal with her right now. 

He never particularly wants to deal with her, but lately she hadn’t been being as aggressive towards him. Being a team seemed to have mellowed her out. It gave her a goal to focus her energy into. And they were all supposed to be working together. 

But right now Slaine is angry. 

Angry at Inaho.

Angry at himself.

Angry at Lemrina. 

She obviously spun her lies in her short time with Inaho, trying to turn them against each other. 

Slaine scowls at her. 

She smirks. “What’s wrong this time, Slaine?”

“You know what’s wrong.”

“I assure you, I don’t. Did Harklight do your laundry wrong? Run out of your favorite shampoo?”

Slaine clenches his fists. “You told Inaho lies.”

She laughs. “I don’t recall lying to him,” she thoughtfully runs her fingers through her hair. “Hmmm… could you possibly be referring to our kiss? Because that definitely wasn’t a lie.”

“You made it seem like-!”

“I think you’re just trying to shift the blame to me, when it was really your own fault.”

The statement hits hard. It’s easy to take all his anger out on Lemrina, and pretend that he did nothing wrong. But he steels himself. This really is all her fault.   
She flips her hair. “Did you two have a fight?” She asks innocently. 

“That’s none of your business!”

She turns and looks out the window. “I can only imagine what a fight with him would be like. Let me guess. You got all worked up and started crying. And his expression never changed. He didn’t even care.”

She laughs at Slaine’s silence. 

It’s true that throughout all of Slaine’s tears and desperate words, Inaho’s eyes remained empty, his voice emotionless and his face expressionless. And then he just left, and hasn’t said a word since. 

Does Inaho even care?

Sometimes Slaine wants to scream at his stoic face, make him show what he’s feeling. 

Does Inaho even really care about anything?

The thoughts float through his head more than he would like. 

Lemrina continues. “Eddelrittuo told me he was kind of strange, but I wasn’t expecting that! I don’t know how you can stand him. I was with him for five minutes, and his personality, or lack of one, was already grating one me.”

She turns to Slaine, and narrows her eyes, suddenly serious. “It’s not a real relationship, is it? There’s no way. It’s some weird sexual thing. Or you’re using each other for information,” she laughs. “That’s something I can see him doing. Giving you a contract to sign stating the terms of your fake relationship.”

Every word hits Slaine like a punch. Inaho could very well be using him for information. It is something he would he. He would be willing to fake emotions to get what he needed. It would be a smart move, a logical move. An Inaho move. 

And Slaine would be the perfect target. Terran raised on Mars, associated with the Princess, aldnoah scientist father… it’s all information Inaho would find useful, and had questioned Slaine about many times. 

Inaho is a genius, and his plans are well-thought out and complex. It’s not impossible that he had even predicted that Slaine might rise in power on Vers and put the plan into motion two years ago, hoping it would play out. 

Inaho is the one who made Slaine return to Vers, where he would be more use to him. And Inaho only reappeared once Slaine began rising in rank.   
Dread fills his stomach. 

“He’s emotionless,” Lemrina says. 

Sudden anger rises. He bites his tongue to keep himself from immediately protesting.

He thinks about how Inaho smiles at him.

How Inaho kisses him. 

How Inaho says ‘I love you’.

He feels sick for doubting Inaho. For doubting everything they shared. 

He knows he hurts Inaho every time he accuses him of not having feelings, and now he kind of understands the hurt, having someone try to tell him it when he knows it’s not true.

“He’s not emotionless,” he hisses. It doesn’t matter what others think about Inaho. If they could see what Slaine sees, they would know. But no one else needs to believe, as long as Slaine does. And he almost didn’t. 

“You do this because you’re angry and bitter,” Slaine says. “Because no one really cares about you”

Lemrina’s eyes go wide and she recoils at Slaine’s words. 

Slaine doesn’t stop. “You’re trapped on Moon Base, and the only reason you’re here is because you’re useful. You can’t be happy, so you try to ruin everyone else’s happiness. I won’t let you.” Slaine says, leaving the room. “And you won’t like the consequences if you don’t stay away from Inaho.”

If Inaho ever comes back…

-

It’s night.

Though, it’s never really day in space. 

Slaine hasn’t seen the sun, or trees, or animals, in two years. 

Inaho is standing in front of him, looking achingly good in his button up and tie. And his pants nice show off his…

Slaine jerks his eyes back up to Inaho’s face, which is irritatingly blank. Slaine pushes any angry thoughts away. Slaine feels nothing but happiness and affection towards him right now. But after their fight, he doubts Inaho is in the same position. He half wants to get Lemrina in here, to see if her words can backfire into Inaho forgiving Slaine as well.

He imagines he can almost smell the fresh, earth air on Inaho, and see a glow left by a sun that doesn’t light Slaine’s sky. 

He feels a pang of jealousy that Inaho can enjoy all of it, but immediately laughs internally at himself. 

It’s not like the idiot ever goes outside, unless he has to or is forced. Inaho is just as likely to smell like fresh air as the stale earth provisions Slaine had for dinner are. 

“Slaine. I’m sorry.”

Slaine reddens. Inaho beat him to it. He was too busy admiring, and making fun of, Inaho in his head to do what he had been waiting to do all day.   
“No! I’m sorry!”

“No. It’s too late,” Inaho says seriously. Slaine’s stomach drops. “I already said it first.”

The corners of Inaho’s mouth twitch upwards. 

Slaine sighs as all the tension evaporates. He tightly wraps his arms around Inaho. 

Slaine laughs as Inaho tries to wiggle his arms free from where Slaine’s hug has them pinned to his sides. 

“If I had known I was going to be restrained, I wouldn’t have come.”

“The great Inaho was outmaneuvered and outmatched.”

Inaho stops struggling. “Or perhaps this was my plan all along,” he says, bringing his face closer to Slaine’s. The breath on his neck is a welcome addition. 

“You can’t tell me it was your plan. That defeats the purpose.”

Slaine feels Inaho smile against his shoulder. “The purpose doesn’t seem defeated to me,” he says, and places a soft kiss on Slaine’s neck. 

Slaine laughs as he pulls Inaho down onto the bed with him. He looks at Inaho’s warm eyes and happy smile. He can’t believe he almost let Lemrina’s words tear them apart. And he vows to never let Inaho know the thoughts that he had. He knows they would hurt him, even if he kept a blank face. 

He doesn’t know why everything is suddenly Ok with just an ‘I’m sorry’, but everything feels right, like it hasn’t since they were both on earth. There’s no hidden resentment tainting the air, no secret agendas filling the conversation, nothing building a wall between them anymore. The atmosphere feels clean and pure. 

Slaine decides that maybe he doesn’t need earth air as much as he thought, as long as he has this. 

Inaho moves on top of Slaine and pins him to the bed. 

“If I had known I was going to be restrained, I wouldn’t have let you in.”

“You can’t not let me in,” Inaho points out, glancing at the hypergate. 

“I could have moved it to the hallway. Or a closet. Or the kitchen. They would have taken you and made you cook something other than eggs.” 

Slaine frees his arms and reaches upwards to cup Inaho’s face. He rubs his thumb down Inaho’s jawline. 

“Should I be prepared to arrive in the garbage room next time?” Inaho asks. 

Slaine laughs. “That depends.”

Inaho doesn’t ask on what. He closes his eyes and kisses Slaine hard. 

Slaine struggles to keep his head as he stokes Inaho’s cheek, and Inaho’s mouth is hot and wet against his. 

Slaine trails open-mouthed kisses over Inaho’s jaw. 

Inaho is breathing hard. “I hope this means I won’t land in trash tomorrow.” 

“Shut up, Orange,” Slaine says unevenly, moving his mouth to Inaho’s neck. 

“Bat,” Inaho whispers, and guides Slaine’s mouth back to his, kissing him hungrily. 

They kiss like they have the whole world.

They kiss like they are losing the whole world. 

And when Inaho groans his name, Slaine knows there’s nothing he needs to protect more.

-

“Count Marylcian, you say?” Harklight asks skeptically. Lemrina listens through the doorway, as has become a habit from her time on Moon Base. If no one will give her information, she will get it herself.

“Yes, sir,” the messenger says. “He’s been calling repeatedly, insisting that he be put through to Princess Asseylum.”

“What does Milord Slaine say?”

Lemrina’s face twists. She hates Slaine. She hates the way Slaine’s words cut deep.

“There is no sign of him, sir.”

Lemrina scowls. She knows what Slaine is probably doing right now. She rolls her chair over to the two men. “What is all this commotion?” she asks unhappily. 

The messenger opens his mouth in surprise at the sight of her. She supposes she shouldn’t go revealing herself to every lowly person on this rock, but right now she can’t bring herself to care. 

However Harklight firmly tells the man to leave them, and he scurries off. 

“Oh dear, can’t have your discussion with me in the room?” She asks, smiling.

“Unfortunately not, Highness. Knowledge of your existence is limited, even here at Moon Base.”

Like she doesn’t know that. Like she doesn’t know that the only people who even know she’s alive are the ones who need her for their plans. 

“I must ask that you avoid public areas,” Harklight finishes. Anger flares through her. Who is he to tell her where she can and can’t go? She’s already trapped in this chair, in this metal space station, and now Harklight is trying to trap her to her quarters?

“Shall I speak to him?” She asks sweetly.

“Huh?!”

She rolls her chair closer to Harklight. “It’s Count Marylcian, isn’t it?”

“But your Highness…”

“Is there a problem?”

Harklight makes a sound of frustration, but he can’t object. He is a servent, she is a princess. She smiles brightly at him. “Patch him through to the throne room.”

-

“Her Highness Asseylum is most gracious,” Count Marylcian says, image projected above the room. “Please forgive this sudden disturbance.”

“It is a pleasure to see you, Count Marylcian,” Lemrina speaks, using her sister’s voice and her sister’s words, with her sister’s face. “Now, what did you wish to discuss with me? It must be urgent indeed, for you to contact me, without first obtaining Count Troyard’s permission.”

She struggles not to spit Slaine’s title out. 

Count Marylcian laughs. “Ah. One cannot speak to you in private? I must say, Count Troyard is being rather overprotective to keep you under that much guard.”  
Her mouth opens a little at the words. Lemrina sees Harklight’s face harden.

Count Marylcian smiles. “Perhaps ‘under guard’ was a poor choice of words. He is more of a knight, who seeks to protect his princess imprisoned in her ivory tower. Oh! My apologies if I have given offense. I have compared your Highness to a bird in a cage.”

“A bird in a cage…”

“That is the expression on earth used to describe someone who has lost their freedom,” he explains, blonde curls bouncing around his face.

What an idiot. She knows what it means. She’s not an ignorant fool like her sister. But even if he is an idiot, his words have merit. Even he can see that she is being trapped. 

And he believes her to be the real Princess Asseylum. 

If he knew she was bound to this chair. Only allowed in public looking like someone else. Kept in the dark until deemed useful. He would know how little freedom she truly had.

Slaine thinks he can imprison her. Not allow her to talk to anyone. Use her for his foolish dream. 

Well, he’s wrong if he thinks she will just be a piece for him to play. She has her own freedom to fight for, her own dreams to achieve. 

And they don’t involve being prisoner to Slaine Troyard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Sorry for the late update! :( It's Thanksgiving week, and finals are coming up, so updates might be every 2 weeks for a while. 
> 
> -This chapter felt so good to finally write. Inaho's thoughts finally snapped into place, and their painful conflict should be over. Looking forward to their (much happier) future interactions :)
> 
> -Thanks for reading! I always love hearing from everyone, and I hope you're enjoying it as much as I am!


	29. Chapter 29

It’s the early afternoon on Moon Base, and the day had been going well for Slaine. He and Inaho had made up yesterday, and Slaine spent his day smiling to himself. Things had been going his way. Everything had been good. 

Which is why something had to go wrong. 

“What is the meaning of this?!” Slaine asks Harklight, as the two landing castles come increasingly closer to Moon Base. “Who gave them permission to land?!”

“Milord, it was-“

“I did.”

They both turn as Lemrina enters the room in her chair, Eddelrittuo close behind. 

“Why?” Slaine demands.

“Count Marylcian requested a personal audience with Princess Asseylum. So I gave them permission to dock. As Princess Asseylum,” her eyes harden. “No, as a princess of Vers.”

“Why would you do that?” Slaine asks again, he can feel the sweat forming on his face, and his panic rising. He wasn’t prepared for this. He isn’t prepared for the situation if Lemrina suddenly goes rogue. As much as he hates it, right now she is the main source of his power. 

“Let’s go,” she says, and rolls towards the docking bay, where by now the Counts’ Kataphrakts should be arriving. “It would be poor manners to keep our visitors waiting.”

As Slaine walks behind her, he wonders what he will have to do if Lemrina indeed has decided to stop helping him. He needs her image as Princess Asseylum to support him. Without it, he is nothing but a terran playing at war. He would be torn apart by the Orbital Knights immediately. 

And even if she more subtly begins to undermine his plans, it could be disastrous. He grits his teeth and realizes he should probably have held his tongue towards her yesterday.

Her stares at the back of Lemrina’s head, as it changes from pink to blonde. He gets a familiar ache in his chest at the sight of Princess Asseylum, and he wishes, not for the first time, that he was working with the real one, instead of her fake.

But whatever Lemrina has put in motion now, it was too late to stop. Slaine watches the two kataphrakts of his least favorite counts enter through the dimensional barrier of Moon Base’s docking room. 

Lemrina rises from her chair, able to stand in the low gravity of this room. 

Count Marylcian and Count Barouhcruz stand on the top of their kataphrakts and bow. 

“Princess Asseylum. We are both humbled and delighted,” Count Marylcian says with a flourish. “That your highness has granted us an audience on such short notice.”

“Count Marylcian, Count Barouhcruz,” Lemrina says, looking at each in turn. “I am most grateful to both of you for bolstering our orbital defenses. Under normal circumstances, I would expect that you would wish to go down to earth and expand your domain.”

“We shall leave the conquest of earth in the hands of our like-minded brethren,” Marylcian says pleasantly. “Your Highness needn’t worry.”

“That is good to hear,” Lemrina says with a smile. 

Count Marylcian smiles a less sweet smile. “However, there is a matter of even greater importance to discuss.”

Slaine notices that Count Barouhcruz seems disgruntled at this. And he wonders why Barouhcruz is even here, if it was Marylcian that requested the audience, and Marylcian who has the request. 

“With the previous Count Saazbuam dead, who will succeed to the post of Royal Guard, who is charged with safe guarding moon base and your highness?”  
“There is no cause for concern. I have taken over those duties,” Slaine says immediately. 

Count Marylcian’s smile drops off his face. “Princess Asseylum, I have come to beg you to consider giving me the honor of serving at your side.”  
Everyone’s noises of surprise echo across the room. Even Barouhcruz’s. 

Slaine needs to stop this now. He should have expected this is why they both came here. “Count Marylcian, I have-“

“I will thank you to keep your comments to yourself, terran!” Marylcian sneers. “This is a fortress that flies the flag of the Vers empire. If that post was bestowed on the previous Count Saazbuam, a man of great merit who rescued her highness, I would be disappointed, but nonetheless approve. But you, an earthborn, even if you are his adopted son, dare to think that you can inherit this post using this turmoil as pretext? To have one of low blood set foot inside a castle where a member of the vulnerable vers imperial family dwells is a fact that cannot be tolerated!”

Slaine clenches his fists at his side. He supposes he should be surprised this didn’t happen sooner, but it doesn’t lighten the brunt of the insults. 

Count Marylcian spreads his arms wide. “One who does not possess a landing castle is unfit to call himself a count,” he jumps down from his kataphrakt, floating gracefully to the floor. “You are not qualified to protect this place, not in the least!” He says as he marches towards the group. 

“What are you suggesting then?” Slaine asks the man now right in front of him.

“That we determine who is more fit to protect her highness, my Herschel or your Tharsis.” He raises his finger and points it directly at Slaine’s face. “Count Troyard, I hereby challenge you to a duel!”

Count Barouhcruz’s mouth opens and then closes. Lemrina looks to the ground. Slaine stares coldly at the finger in his face. 

He can’t reject the challenge. It would get back to the rest of the knights, and they would think him a coward, or that he had no honor to defend his position. He would continue to be challenged. 

“I only have her highness’s best interests at heart,” Slaine says. “I accept your duel, and if you are proven to be able to protect her better, I will gladly relinquish my position.”

Count Marylcian grins widely. “Then I propose the duel take place tom-“

“Don’t you want to rest, first?” Lemrina asks sweetly, in Princess Asseylum’s voice. “You had a long trip and must be tired.”

Count Marylcian looks respectfully towards Lemrina. “Of course, your highness, but-“

“Oh!” She claps her hands together in a very Asseylum way. “We must also celebrate your arrival! You have done so much for Vers, it’s only fitting!”

The smile is completely gone from Count Marylcian’s face now. “I appreciate the sentiment, your highness, however-“

“I agree.” Count Barouhcruz says, dropping from his own kataphrakt. “A party would be very nice.”

“Ah! It’s settled then!” Lemrina smiles brightly. “The other Orbital Knights in the vicinity would also be invited, of course! In this time of war, it is necessary to remember that we are all unified in a single purpose. We can honor all of your accomplishments, you have all done so much for Vers.”

Count Barouhcruz bows. “That is a great idea, your Highness.”

Count Marylcian bows too, though with a slight scowl on his face. “Yes, thank you, your Highness.”

As the two counts make their way back to their kataphrakts, and to their landing castles, Slaine thinks about how masterfully done that was on Lemrina’s part. 

She postponed the duel in a way that Count Marylcian couldn’t refuse. She was giving Slaine time to prepare. Marylcian obviously came here with that purpose, and likely already had a plan, hoping to catch Slaine off-guard, and give him little time to think. 

But now he has at least a couple days. He’s not sure it will help much. Marylcian is a seasoned fighter, with a powerful kataphrakt, and tricks up his sleeves.  
But this ‘party’ will also give Slaine a chance to broker favor with other Orbital Knights. The more support he has, the better. 

It was a good political move that only the princess of Vers could pull off. 

Why did she do it? Did she regret bringing the Counts here? Was she really trying to give Slaine a better chance? Or was she simply promoting her own plans?

He narrows his eyes as she sits back down in her chair, allows her hologram to drop, and Eddelrittuo pushes her away. 

He doesn’t understand her. He doesn’t trust her. 

But she’s smart. And he needs her. 

-

Slaine allows a day to pass before making his move. It’s almost exactly 24 hours since the challenge was issued.

Slaine looks up at the three screens, each displaying a different Count’s face. “Count Sebring. Count Raffia. Count Orga,” he greets. “Thank you all for allowing me to intrude on your valuable time.”

“I’m sorry for you loss, Count Troyard” Count Raffia says, her voice kind. 

“What happened to Count Saazbuam was most regrettable,” Count Sebring says.

“When he was alive, my father was greatly indebted to him, if it is in my power, whatever assistance you request is yours.” Count Orga says. He is the oldest Knight of the three. Slaine wonders just how many debts Count Saazbuam had collected in his time, and how he put them to use in his plan to destroy the royal family and earth. 

“Thank you, that is very kind,” Slaine says, smiling. “However, now is not the time to wallow in individual sentimentality.”

All the counts smile at him. “Very commendable,” Count Sebring says. 

“Yes. This is the time for Orbital Knights to band together, and press forward with the invasion of Earth.” Count Orga adds. 

“That is the best way to honor Count Saazbuam,” Count Raffia agrees. 

“Yes,” Slaine says. “Our ships must sail forward together towards the same goal.”

“Ah, now I see,” says Count Raffia not unpleasantly. 

“You intend to take the helm, then.” Count Orga confirms. 

“If I may be so presumptuous,” Slaine replies, bowing his head. 

There is silence. Then: “I understand you are to duel Count Marylcian?” They all laugh. “I find it odd to be fighting when we must band together. Don’t you agree, Count Troyard?”

Slaine lowers his head. “No lowly terran….” He raises it, and meets their eyes. “No lowly terran could possibly be a match for the mighty Vers. Such an assumption creates an opening. Which becomes a tear. Which becomes an enormous hole. And then it disintegrates completely. That is the current state of the Obrital Knights!”

They all gasp. “You go too far, Count Troyard!”

Slaine ignores them. “As you are aware, I am not vers-born. However, being an outsider affords me a certain perspective. This upcoming duel is also the result of an Orbital Knight’s hubris. I believe it to be my responsibility to teach him the errors of his ways.”

They all make grunts of consideration. 

“I see, you have a point,” Count Orga finally says. 

“Count Orga!” The others yell. 

“I am loathe to admit it, but it is the truth. Some portion of it, at least. I shall leave the matter to your discretion, Count Troyard,” he smiles. “Your attack on Trident Base was magnificent.”

The others look down in consideration. Count Orga’s words hold great weight, as he is well respected within the Orbital Knights. 

“Thank you for doing me the honor of listening to my rude remarks,” Slaine says, bowing. “And I’m sure you have all received Princess Asseylum’s invitation for the royal celebration, honoring the Orbital Knights?”

They smile. “Yes, of course.”

“Even Princess Asseylum knows it’s important for us all to act as one in this time. I hope you see that both of our intentions is indeed to work together and prevent discord within the Orbital Knights.”

Their faces become serious, and Slaine knows that it has sealed him their support. This celebration shows them that he is willing to work together, and that he respects them. Whether she meant to or not, Lemrina certainly came through for him. 

-

Despite Slaine’s threats about garbage, Inaho arrives in Slaine’s room as usual. 

Sometimes Inaho wonders if anyone on earth notices his frequent absences. No doubt the ones who know of Slaine’s existence, and Inaho’s involvement with him are aware on some level of what is going on. 

He doubts he is missed otherwise. 

And so far Captain Magbaredge, Yuki, and the others still trust him, so far. 

He puts all those worries out his head when he sees Slaine. 

His hair is flattened on one side, and messy on the other, like he fell asleep somewhere less than optimal. He looks tired. 

“Hey, Orange,” Slaine says, with a sleepy smile on his face. 

“Hey, Bat,” Inaho says, pulling out his tablet and sitting on Slaine’s bed. 

“Yes, go ahead. Make yourself at home,” Slaine says dryly, but the smile is still there, so Inaho ignores the jab. 

“Did you see this?” Inaho asks, showing Slaine the webpage. 

Slaine takes a moment and reads the page. He sighs. “You shouldn’t be showing me this, Orange.”

“Probably not,” Inaho agrees. “But I believe in what you are doing more than I believe in them.”

The choice the UFE made in regards to stationing bases where refugees and other civilians were currently being harbored made sense. They would be better hidden in the cover of still standing cities than out in the middle of nowhere. They would have plenty of supplies and resources for their soldiers. They may even be able to refill their dwindling troops. 

Two years ago, Inaho wouldn’t have thought twice about the decision. In war, everything goes. Anything necessary to survive. 

But if the goal of war is just to survive, why fight in the first place?

Slaine looks at him. “Why are you suddenly ok with this?” he asks hesitantly. 

“Because you’re fighting for a world where this wouldn’t happen anymore. There is no right side in this war. You’re the only one fighting for something worth fighting for at all.”

Inaho had been foolishly clinging to the past. He desperately wanted the way it was before. But that was lost the day he was shot. Perhaps sooner (his father’s video?).

Slaine couldn’t stand back and watch the world destroy itself. Slaine was too kind-hearted, too noble, to allow that. 

So for now, Inaho can let go of the hide and seek, the food fights, the constellations and the games. 

He has to let go of their shattered past. 

And he can fight for their future. 

Slaine grabs Inaho’s hand. Inaho gratefully intertwines their fingers. Slaine sighs again and lowers his head onto Inaho’s shoulder. “I just want to make things right.”

“I know. And I will help you.”

Slaine jerks his head up and looks at Inaho, wide-eyed. “Inaho, you can’t-”

“Our goals align. So helping you is only logical. My goal is to save you. And have a future with you.”

“Inaho…” Slaine whispers, Inaho sees that his eyes are wet. 

“Besides, if you think about it, there are really three factions, not two.” Inaho holds up his fingers as he counts them off. “There’s the earth, or the UFE. There’s Vers, or the Royal family and the Orbital Knights. And there’s you. So why would I pick anything else?”

“Plus,” Inaho adds. “I have to keep you alive.”

Slaine’s small smile drops at that, and he looks away. Inaho doesn’t know what he said wrong. 

“I… I have a duel.”

“What?”

“With Count Marylcian. For status of Princess Asseylum’s guardian.”

“Why?” Inaho demands. The concept of a duel is outdated and unnecessary. Slaine had been doing this for weeks now. Why had he accepted? Surely he could have made a case. 

“I need to demonstrate my strength, and secure my position.”

“Did you initiate this duel?”

“No…” Slaine’s tone hardens. “It was Lemrina. I don’t know what her motives were, but it’s too late to back out.”

“Will it be dangerous?”

Slaine looks away. “Probably. Count Marylcian doesn’t want me demoted. He wants me gone.”

“When is it?”

“I don’t know… Lemrina initiated a celebration beforehand. In two days. A party with all the Orbital Knights.”

“I’m going.”

Slaine gapes at him. “What?”

“I said I’m going.”

“I know what you said, Orange! I just don’t know why you would say something so stupid!”

“It’s not stupid,” Inaho says, offended. “You said all the Orbital Knights will be there. Which means I can gather information on them. I can also learn more about this Count Marylcian, so that you can prepare for the duel.”

“You think I can’t do that myself?! In a way that’s not stupid?!”

“You won’t be efficient. You are known, everyone will be suspicious. Also, you do not have an analytical engine.”

“Ah,” Slaine says bitterly. “Your eye.”

Inaho smiles. “If that’s all you have to say, then you must know it’s a good idea.”

“No! I can’t just bring the top UFE soldier into a Vers royal party! They would kill you immediately!”

“They won’t know it’s me. There are 37 clans, each with their own servants and lower nobility. No one will notice an extra one. You can say I am one of yours, if anyone asks. Besides, no one knows my face.”

“Inaho! It’s too dangerous!”

“So you get to do all the dangerous things alone, Bat? We are fighting a war. Everything we do is dangerous. This is no more so than anything else. We’re doing this together, so you have to let me help.”

“I don’t have to let you do anything,” Slaine mutters. “But fine,” he snaps. “You’re not going to drop it, and you’ll just end up doing something stupid if I don’t let you.”

Inaho smiles in success. Slaine gives him a half-hearted glare. 

“Inaho grabs both of Slaine’s hands and looks seriously into his eyes. “Slaine Troyard,” Slaine’s cheeks take a pink tinge. Inaho pauses for a moment. “Will you accompany me to the martian celebration?”

Slaine stutters in confusion. “Did you just ask me to go with you to a celebration with our enemies to gather information and where we might both be killed like it’s the prom?!”

Inaho smiles. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Slaine rolls his eyes. “Inaho! You can’t just-”

“I’ll pick you up at 8.”

“It's not even scheduled yet!”

-

Inaho walks into the large room with the window take spans almost half of it. Lemrina is gazing out into the blackness. Inaho doesn’t know what the point of windows in space is. 

“Hello,” he says. 

She turns to face him. “Hello,” she says warily. 

Inaho walks to a seat near her and sits down. Since Slaine’s allies know of his existence, and Inaho is now here to help, he decided it would be beneficial to gather at least some information on them. Can he trust them? Can Slaine trust them?

Lemrina is still eyeing him with distaste. 

“What exactly is your lineage?” Inaho asks. “For you to inherit the activation factor, you must be descended through the male line. But I am unware of how many affairs led to aldnoah offspring. You called Seylum your sister, but you could be related on her mother’s side or her father’s side.”

She blinks. “Slaine didn’t tell you?”

Inaho doesn’t say that he didn’t care about her existence until recently, because he was sure he and Slaine would leave Moon Base forever together. He didn’t say that the only time she was really brought up fueled a fight between them. 

“No,” he says. 

“I am her half-sister. My father was Gilzeria. I never knew my mother.”

“Ah,” Inaho says, adding the information to his online profiles. He pulls out his eye cover and puts it on. He looks at the roof as he filters through information in his engine. 

His good eye can see Lemrina still staring at him. 

“Don’t you hate me?” She asks quietly. 

Inaho doesn’t look down, data still scrolls through his vision. “No.”

“Why?” she demands.

“I did find you irritating,” Inaho says truthfully. “But what reason do I have to hate you?”

“Because I kissed Slaine? Because I am the reason he has to complete this duel? Because I am a martian…?” she trails off. 

“None of those warrant hatred. You act in your own interests, not Slaine’s. I can’t blame you for that. And being martian has nothing to do with it. There is no right or wrong side in this war. All that matters is someone’s actions.”

“I tormented him!”

“I’m sure I have hurt him much worse than you. I don’t think you mean him harm. If you did, I would not be having this conversation with you.”

She gives a short laugh, and it does not sound as hard or bitter as usual. “You really do care about him. Slaine is sure lucky to have us. The crazy, overemotional princess and the weird, emotionless terran.”

Inaho flips his cover off and smiles at her. “I’m sure he could have picked a better team.”

She laughs again and it sounds almost genuine. “He could have aligned himself with the Orbital Knights and had all the power he needed. But he chose a disabled girl and an enemy soldier.”

“Aligning himself with the Orbital Knights would have defeated his purpose. He is fighting for you as much as he is anyone else.”

She lowers her eyes. “No. He hates me. And I deserve it.”

“He doesn’t hate you.” Inaho thinks back to the destroyed body of the women in the woods, and the recent death of Count Saazbuam. “If he hated you, you would be dead.”

She is silent at that, and Inaho knows she must have some knowledge of Slaine’s actions. Maybe even moreso than Inaho. 

“He’s trying to do the right thing…” she says.

“Yes,” Inaho agrees.

“You believe in him. That’s why you’re here.”

“I am here for Slaine,” he says simply. 

She sighs. “I mess everything up.”

“Mistakes can have unexpected benefits,” Inaho says thoughtfully. “…Did you know Slaine once wore a skirt?”

Lemrina gasps. “No!”

Inaho smiles and pulls out his tablet. “Yes. Would you like to see?”

She eagerly rolls her chair closer to him and he shows her the picture. She squeals in delight. “If everyone knew Count Troyard wore a skirt…”

“I suspect he would inspire much less fear.”

She giggles and Inaho shows her the next picture, deciding maybe she isn’t that bad after all. 

“That’s my uniform,” he points out proudly. 

“How did you get him to do all that?!”

Inaho smiles. “Mistakes can have unexpected benefits.”

-

Five minutes later Slaine enters the room to find Inaho smiling and Lemrina laughing at something on Inaho’s tablet. 

Lemrina looks up at Slaine, and her eyes widen in panic, but the smile doesn’t leave her face. 

Slaine is instantly suspicious. 

“What are you two doing…?”

Inaho meets his eyes, and Slaine instantly knows it’s nothing good…. This is what happens when he leaves Inaho alone for 10 minutes….

“Nothing, Bat.”

Like Slaine is going to believe that. He moves to take Inaho’s tablet (and possibly destroy it), but Inaho dodges his lunge and passes the tablet to Lemrina, who rolls away quickly. 

She holds the tablet up high, displaying a picture of Slaine and Inaho seemingly trying to rip each other’s clothes off. 

“Why, Orange?!” Slaine cries, as he tries to retrieve the tablet. He vows to destroy it and suffer Inaho’s wrath later. 

Inaho and Lemrina pass it back and forth, to the growing frustration of Slaine. Inaho can apparently use his eye to determine where Slaine will attack from, and flawlessly dodge. 

Slaine wonders what he ever did to deserve this. 

Just as he’s closing in on Lemrina, the doors slide open and the tablet is unceremoniously shoved into Harklight’s surprised hands. 

“Hello, Milord—what is this?”

“Noooo!” Slaine lunges, but it’s too late. He sees Harklight’s face go red in realization as he looks at the tablet. 

Slaine stalks over and rips the tablet out of his hands with scowl. 

He turns and glares at Lemrina, still laughing, and Inaho’s smirking face. “You’re definitely ending up in the garbage next time, Orange,” Slaine mutters darkly. “And this thing is being ejected into space.”

Slaine gets momentary satisfaction in seeing Inaho’s eyes widen a little in horror. But then he makes the mistake of looking back down at the picture on display, and his face reddens all over again. 

“Ugh! You can’t just show this to everyone, Orange!” Slaine says, and takes the tablet, leaving the room. 

“Hey. Bat…” Slaine hears Inaho’s slightly panicked voice call after him. He smirks and keeps walking. 

-

Rayet stops her pacing around Inaho’s room in order to glare at the boy. “You wake me up at the crack of dawn just to tell me we aren’t doing anything?!” She asks, incredulous. 

“Yes.”

She knows her hair is a mess, and there must be dark circles under her eyes. She doesn’t get much sleep in the first place, but the little she has is precious. “Ugh! You are the most-”

“It would be imprudent to act now. He is still being questioned, and if he escapes after only I have questioned him, it would be suspicious. He is in no immediate danger, so we can wait a few days.”

She glares at him some more. Inaho, of course, looks like he always does, with his suit perfect and there is not a dark circle to be seen, despite the ungodly hour.  
She tugs at her own rumpled t shirt. Who puts a suit on at 5 in the morning?! Does he sleep in it?! Does he sleep at all?!

Rayet rubs her eyes and sighs. “How do you know I won’t change my mind in the time you take to finally decide to do something?”

“That’s a gamble I am willing to take.”

She groans. “You’re an idiot.”

He smiles at her, which infuriates her even more. “I don’t even know why I agreed to help you! Especially if I’m going to be woken up like this!”

Inaho shrugs, not sorry at all. 

“I don’t think you even know if you want to free him anymore!” She yells. “I think you’re conflicted because your lover is running around on Vers, trying to kill us!”

His silence tells her everything she needs to know. Inaho never shuts up if he has something condescending, offensive, or technical to say. In her experience, he is only quiet when he doesn’t know what to say. 

“Are you betraying earth?! For him?!”

“It would be betraying earth to set the prisoner free,” Inaho points out.

“Not the way you spun it! You are working with him!”

“Slaine is-”

“I don’t care!” She marches to the door and grabs the handle. “I don’t care about your stupid forbidden romance! I don’t care if you go live on mars! Just leave me out of it!” she opens the door and walks out. “And don’t wake me up before 9 ever again!” She yells, before slamming the door in Inaho’s face. 

-

Lemrina looks out her window at the debris floating by. She wonders if this is as close to seeing anything real that she will ever get. She wonders if she will ever see earth. 

It was last night that she first really met Inaho, and he has long left. It must be early morning on earth. She wonders what he is doing on earth, with the terran soldiers. Is he pretending to work with them? Preparing to fight martians? Is he going on like he isn’t betraying his planet?

Slaine stands next to her. He is undoubtedly thinking something different as he looks out to space. He has already seen earth. He can walk on his own two feet. He is free to go wherever he pleases. 

She feels jealousy and anger rising, but she remembers what happened last time she let her emotions control her. “Are you really going to fight this duel, Slaine?”

“Yes.” He says without hesitation. “I have been challenged, so I can’t back down.”

“This happened because I allowed Count Marylcian’s visit.” She hadn’t known what was going to happen when she granted him his audience. But she was angry at Slaine’s words, angry at her trapped state. And she wanted to do something without Slaine’s permission. She wanted to show Slaine that he did not control her. 

She hadn’t expected it to go so wrong. Slaine is her only ally in this, and she shouldn’t be fighting against him, no matter how much she wants to. 

“Not at all,” Slaine says pleasantly. “It’s all thanks to you.” He turns and smiles at her. “It’s the perfect opportunity to demonstrate my strength. If I am victorious in the duel, it will act as a deterrent for those Orbital Knights who oppose me. There is nothing to be concerned about.”

By now, she shouldn’t be surprised at Slaine’s words. But she had been expecting more anger, more accusations, when Slaine walked into the room.  
She wasn’t expecting this polite (almost nice?) conversation with Slaine. 

Slaine really does know how to twist everything to his favor. “Your dream might actually come true one day, won’t it?”

Slaine doesn’t say anything, just looks out the window. 

She continues. “A terran who had been held in contempt now holds genuine power within Vers.”

Thinking about it, it’s really amazing what Slaine had managed to do. But what will the cost be?

Seeing the old pictures of Slaine with Inaho, seeing Slaine’s lightheartedness as he chased Inaho and his tablet, seeing the obvious affection on Slaine’s face and in Slaine’s words when he was with Inaho, Lemina now knows that Slaine’s soul is warm and kind. 

Can something like that survive in a war played like Slaine is playing it? How could the blushing boy in the picture, so coldly kill someone who called him their son?  
How can a boy whose eyes light up when he sees his lover so thoroughly manipulate a whole empire?

It seems like one side will have to give….

Inaho must know it too. ‘I am here for Slaine’, he said. He’s not here because he cares about the people or the world, but because he cares about Slaine. 

So if Slaine’s dream comes true, will Inaho’s be destroyed?

But it’s not like it’s her problem. What does she care about Slaine and Inaho’s future? It has no bearing on hers.

“Do you intend to hold your grudge against the royal family forever?” Slaine asks her. 

“Yes.” She says immediately. She doesn’t even need to think about it. “It’s incredibly satisfying to see someone without a drop of Versian blood in him gaining power.”  
The royal family wronged her, and so many other people. The royal family needed to be destroyed. Only then could she truly be free. 

Count Saazbuam believed the same thing. 

Why then, did Slaine kill him?

“I don’t think you will ever let go, either.” She tells him. 

More than just Slaine’s noble desire to see the world fixed is driving him. It’s also his hatred. He may hide it behind a just cause, but she is starting to understand.  
His scars, his past. Him killing Count Saazbuam. 

She has enough hatred in her to know that it’s too easy to let it control you. 

But Slaine also has one thing that she doesn’t. “You truly love him, don’t you?”

He has someone who loves him. Someone who he loves. And maybe that love will save him.

Slaine turns away at the mention of Inaho. It’s a touchy subject. She remembers his threat if she ever interacted with Inaho again. Despite this conversation, and his friendlier attitude towards her, he obviously still doesn’t trust her near Inaho. 

Which is a shame, because Inaho is turning out to be interesting…

“If I may… would you let me help you?” she asks quietly. “I meant what I said before, about our goals aligning. I haven’t been acting like an ally. I apologize for my words and actions.”

Slaine keeps his stare on the window. Either looking at the remains of the moon, or his own reflection in the thick glass. 

“I won’t be my sister’s replacement, and I won’t let you control me. But I will fight together with you as an equal. We can achieve our dreams.”

Slaine turns to her, and she sees determination in his eyes. She knows her own match his. She won’t let this window be the closest she gets to earth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Slaine can never escape his past embarrassments while Inaho is around :|
> 
> -Things are getting exciting! :) Winter break is coming up, but I'm going on vacation next week, so chapter might be delayed (not like it isn't always, anyway :( )
> 
> -Thanks for reading! :) I still can't believe i'm still writing and not close to done


	30. Chapter 30

Slaine is sure planning any sort of party would stress him out. But planning one with all his enemies, all the people he needs to demonstrate his strength to, and the person he loves all gathered in one place is going to turn his hair gray. 

Two days. That’s how long he had. It wasn’t nearly enough time. 

Especially since he had absolutely no help. 

He, Lemrina, Inaho and Harklight would gather in Lemrina’s large sitting room, next to the window, and Slaine would desperately try to get them to help. 

But Harklight was accustomed to following orders, not making them. Still, his willingness to do the tasks required probably made him the most helpful. 

Lemrina initiated this party, and Slaine was beginning to question her motives. Most of the time she was cold and manipulative, making it easy to forget she was just a 15 year old girl. Who had never been to a party. 

She was excited, and constantly babbling about things that didn’t matter. 

“The color scheme should be red and gold, I think! Maybe I can get a new dress to wear…!” she said eagerly, eyes shining. “And my hair-”

“You’ll be using a hologram to look like Seylum, though,” Inaho pointed out. 

Her face immediately dropped. “Yes, I know.” She said stiffly, and promptly shut up.

And Inaho. 

Inaho was probably the worst. 

Lemrina was smart, and Slaine could probably have managed to get her help, if it wasn’t for Inaho. 

He would constantly be showing her something on his tablet that would make her burst out into giggles, and Slaine’s cheeks redden for no reason other than suspicion. He supposed he should be glad that Lemrina and Inaho were getting along now. Their personalities were so different, it only seemed natural that they would clash. Especially with Inaho's off putting nature, and Lemrina's cunning, veiled words and easy temper. And it seemed like they would hate each other at first. But somehow, it didn't turn out that way. And Slaine isn't sure this arrangement suits him any better. 

Lemrina would ask Inaho questions, completely ignoring Slaine. 

“What does rain feel like?” 

“You’ve taken a shower before.”

“Yes! But it falls from the sky, right?! How is that possible?”

“The atmospheric water vapor has condensed in the sky, and then it falls due to gravity.”

Slaine did his best to ignore them, and figure out the optimal seating arrangements by himself. 

“What causes gravity?”

“What causes day and night?”

“What’s the best earth food?”

Slaine growled deeply. “Eggs! He's going to say eggs!” He snapped and left the room. 

Slaine was absorbed in his work in his own chambers when Inaho decided to enter the room. 

Slaine didn’t look up, assuming Inaho would just sit on the bed and continue being no help. 

Instead, he felt arms wrap around him from behind, and a head burrow into his neck. 

“Orange,” Slaine said warningly. 

“Bat.” Inaho hummed into his neck, before wetly kissing the area. 

Slaine squirmed, and Inaho just kept going, slowly kissing up his neck.

“Inaho! I’m trying to work!”

Inaho pulled Slaine’s earlobe into his mouth, and Slaine groaned. Half frustration, half desire. 

“You don’t need to do all this,” Inaho mumbled into Slaine’s ear. “The point is to obtain information. We can do that without all this.”

“I have to demonstrate my strength,” Slaine panted.

Inaho kissed up his jawline. “That’s what the duel is for.”

Inhao was a genius, but definitely didn’t understand how to play the subtle game of manipulation and politics. 

Inaho’s hands cupped Slaine’s face, and turned his head towards Inaho’s. Inaho planted a messy kiss on the side of Slaine’s mouth. 

Inaho’s thumb rubbed soft circles on Slaine’s cheek, as he continued to kiss all over Slaine’s face and neck.

Slaine groaned again as his eyes fluttered shut. He turned and kissed Inaho harder than probably necessary. 

Slaine pushed Inaho towards the bed, unbuttoning his shirt. “You’re annoying,” Slaine gasped out, hands roaming down Inaho’s chest. 

Inaho smiled, not looking very sorry. In fact, he looked rather pleased with himself. 

Slaine kissed the smirk off his face. “I should lock you out,” Slaine muttered unevenly, as he kissed Inaho’s neck. 

“You can’t,” Inaho said. “The door is an electromagnetic locking device. To unlock it, it would only take a simple-“

Inaho’s breath hitched and he shut up as Slaine kissed down his chest. 

Inaho’s hands pulled Slaine’s body tight against his, Slaine moaned and they pressed together. 

Needless to say, Slaine did not get any work done for the rest of the night. 

Inaho was definitely the worst.

And now it’s two days later, the day of the party, and Slaine isn’t nearly as prepared as he would have liked to be. He wanted carefully planned words, adjusted for each Orbital Knight he was talking to. He wanted small, subtle displays of his power. He wanted to show them all that he had Princess Asseylum’s full support, and gain their respect and trust. 

But he will make do with what he has. 

-

Inaho decided it was probably a better idea to go visit Lemrina after Slaine yelled at him, and Inaho’s eye showed that his stress levels were much higher than usual.   
It’s the night of the party. It’s fortunate that Moon Base works on a similar time schedule as earth. No one will notice he is gone for the night. And if they do, they won’t be suspicious, because he’s almost always gone for the night. 

“Hello,” Inaho greets her like usual. 

She sighs, turning from her window. “Hello, Inaho.”

“Are you prepared?”

“Yes. Are you?”

Inaho absently touches his eye. “Yes.”

She frowns. “It’s not like I can do much, pretending to be my sister.”

“Slaine needs your support. You hold power over all the Orbital Knights.”

“I don’t. She does.”

“But you can appear to be her, which gives you the power. Does it matter how it is obtained, as long as you have it? You’re in control.”

She gives him a considering look. “I suppose…” she looks down at her legs. “I just wish...” she mutters, then looks abruptly back at him. “Aren’t you worried about him?” She demands. 

“Worried about Slaine?”

“Yes! Don’t you see what he’s doing?”

“Yes.”

“You sound like you don’t care. It doesn’t bother me if he wants to sacrifice himself for this cause. What he is doing benefits me. But it seems like it should bother you.”

“Slaine has dedicated himself to this. Stopping him would destroy him just as much as continuing would. At least he has a chance at success.”

Lemrina looks away. “I don’t know if he will be the same after all this is over, even if he does succeed.”

Inaho follows her gaze out the window. “I’ll always love him.”

She turns back and gives him a strange look. There is quiet for a few minutes. 

Finally, she sighs. “Well, you can’t wear that,” she says gesturing to Inaho. 

“What’s wrong with this?” Inaho asks, looking down at his usual clothes. 

“You look like a terran!” she laughs. “And a stuffy one at that!”

Inaho glowers at her in offense. 

She laughs again. “Come on,” she says, rolling her chair towards the door. “We need to help him all we can.”

-

Slaine whips his head back and forth between Inaho and the room, not sure which one is more surprising.

Somehow, the room looks great, despite Slaine’s lack of attention to it. Tables at set up, adorned with red table clothes and golden flowers. The walls are strung with tiny lights, and other decorations Slaine would have had no idea how to use. 

The whole room has a very elegant, but light hearted, feeling. He spins towards Lemrina, who currently looks like Princess Asseylum, wearing a very beautiful white dress, which is the right mix of sophistication and innocence. She smiles only slightly sarcastically at him. 

Everything is displayed in the perfect way. A way he never could have achieved. The room is already full of people. Counts, servants, lower nobles, wives, maids, whole households are here. It’s full and noisy and just the way he wanted.

He’ll thank her after all this is over. 

He turns back to Inaho.

Inaho is dressed, like almost everyone else in the room, in a tuxedo. Slaine is taking it all in, and vaguely wonders if Inaho even knows how to tie a bow tie, or if he got Lemrina to do it for him. Either way, Slaine decides that he will be untying it for him much later tonight. 

The only thing about Inaho that doesn’t fit is his bright blue eyes. They are much bluer, than Slaine’s green tinted ones. Almost like the sky. They’re so startlingly blue, and they stand out so much more against his pale skin and dark hair. 

“I figured we would give everyone something to notice about him,” Lemrina says, noticing Slaine’s stare. “Something beautiful. All everyone will remember about him is his blue eyes. So no one will ever recognize him once he takes the contacts out.”

They really are beautiful. They must be something other than regular colored contacts, to get a color that bright and pure. They certainly take attention away from Inaho’s actual facial features. 

Slaine puts his thoughts about Inaho aside and takes a deep breath. He straightens his back, and squares his shoulders. Count Troyard is about to enter the room. 

-

Inaho watches Slaine work from the side of the room, with some lesser nobles. There is no distinguishing between households in the room. The only indication of rank are the red ties, and much nicer suits, that the counts wear. 

Inaho suspects that Lemrina insisted on a more unified dress code, for a multitude of reasons. 

Her and Slaine both know how to play these people well, Inaho notes. She has conversed with many nobles, innocent smile on her face at all times. Yet, Inaho is sure her words are full of hidden meanings and disguised questions. 

She looks exactly like the princess she is supposed to be portraying. With her short, white dress displaying her legs, and her hair hanging loose around her face, she gives off an aura of control, but kindness. 

It seems as though she is able to walk in short amounts, with Eddelrittuo helping her, and the room’s lower than average gravity. 

It’s not so low that anything can float, or hover, but it is low enough so that there is a feeling of lightness in the room. The pressure of gravity isn’t pushing down as hard as usual. Maybe a 9.2 instead of 9.8…

Inaho feels that he hasn’t been much help. He isn’t charismatic enough to charm the nobles like Slaine and Lemrina. He isn’t a high enough rank to approach them without cause. 

He was counting on the fact that he could detect lies. 

But he soon discovered that almost everyone was constantly lying. 

“It’s so nice to see you.” Lie.

“I am going into battle as soon as my landing castle is fixed.” Lie.

“I had the most delicious food straight from earth yesterday!” Lie.

“Yes, this is my natural color.” Lie. 

Inaho catalogues all of them, but he knows he hasn’t heard anything useful. No one is going to talk about where their true alliances lay in the presence of the princess. 

Inaho stares at Slaine and half listens to the conversation happening beside him (petty gossip).

Slaine looks so completely in his element, talking to a count and countess that Inaho doesn’t know. He has a polite smile on, and the others seem to be agreeing with whatever he’s saying, nodding seriously. 

Inaho must absentmindedly mutter Slaine’s name, because one of the nobles behind him stops his conversation and turns to Inaho. 

“He’s something, isn’t he?” the young man asks. 

Inaho makes a noise of agreement, eyes on Slaine’s butt. The man must take it to continue.

He lowers his voice to a whisper. “He’s a terran, you know.”

By now, the other three that were gossiping earlier have now joined in to listen, and all nod their heads solemnly. 

“But he has risen past his unfortunate birth,” another says. “He is doing great things for Vers.”

“Did you hear about his attack on Trident Base?”

“Count Orga says…”

Inaho files that away. Count Orga’s household seems to support Slaine. The conversation drifts back to less important things, so Inaho also drifts away, finding a different group to stand next to. 

“Did you see Slaine Troyard?” Inaho asks them. 

They scowl. “That terran dog acting like he owns the place. He doesn’t belong here.”

Inaho moves from group to group, collecting data on who supports Slaine, who outright opposes him, and who is unknown. 

All he has to do is mention Slaine Troyard, and the conversation directs itself. His lack of expression seems to convince whatever group he is talking to, that he shares their views. 

Inaho found out what he is good for at parties: gossiping about Slaine. 

"I don't know if his hair is natural," Inaho says to the group of girls gathered around, who had already seemed to have been talking about Slaine even before Inaho arrived. "The color is very unusual, even for a terran. The combination of genes would be very unlikely. Maybe less than a 10% chance." They nod solemnly at his answer. 

"I doubt it is," a girl with long brown hair says. "I always wondered if the orbital knights have some way of using aldnoah to alter their appearance. How can they all be so beautiful?"

Inaho nods in agreement. He's not sure if the royal family's use of holograms is widespread knowledge or not. He has to assume it is not, considering how easily they accept Lemrina and Seylum. Still, orbital knights, even with aldnoah activation rights, do not have that ability. 

"Yes, Slaine Troyard's hair is almost certainly fake," Inaho concludes to the girls, distractedly. The music changed to something low and sweet. Inaho does not often pick up in shifts in the mood, and doesn't pay particular attention to music, but he had just been talking about Slaine for the past two hours, with only brief views of the man. And how, staring at Slaine's hair, and talking about how good looking he is with a bunch of girls, Inaho really wants to see Slaine up close. 

Inaho looks towards Slaine, and finds Slaine already looking at him. He leaves the girls without a word.

He and Slaine make their way to the center of the room, where the music is the loudest and the crowds are the thickest. They converge in the center, and fit their bodies together, swaying lightly to the music. 

It doesn’t matter what the song is. It doesn’t matter that they are surrounded by people who probably want both of them dead. 

It matters that Inaho had ached to have Slaine close all night. Talking to everyone about him only heightened that desire. All night, unsubtlety staring at Slaine across the room as he conversed with Nobles, as he ran his fingers through his hair, as he smiled brightly at his guests. And now unsubtlety staring at Slaine’s face right in front of him. 

“Ouch!” Slaine hisses. “I see you haven’t improved at dancing, Orange.”

“I see you haven’t improved as a teacher.”

“You’re the worst student ever!” Slaine exclaims. “You have no rhythm!”

Inaho hmms happily and plays with the hairs at the nape of Slaine’s neck. 

-

Slaine sighs as Inaho steps on his foot for the thousandth time. 

“Realistically, it’s as much your fault as it is mine,” Inaho says. “If you were a more skilled dancer, you would be able to compensate for my mistakes.”

Slaine groans and he absentmindedly raises his hand to touch next to Inaho’s eye. 

He had been looking at them all night. The blue is so startling, and it leaves an ache in Slaine’s chest for reminding him of Earth’s skies, and of Princess Asseylum’s closed eyes. 

He’s sure there are plenty in the room that Inaho’s eyes have caught the attention of. Even without bright, blue eyes, Inaho would have gathered attention. 

“Do you like it?” Inaho asks, snapping Slaine from his thoughts.

“Like what?”

Inaho puts his fingers over the hand still resting next to Inaho’s eye. He gives Slaine a questioning look. 

“It reminds me of earth…” 

Inaho nods. “It’s simple to change the color of the analytical engine, and the other eye-“

“That’s not what I meant!” Slaine rips his hand from Inaho’s face. The idea of Inaho changing his eye colors for more than one night…

It looks so good on Inaho’s face. He pops, he holds the blue of earth. Slaine wants to look at it forever, pretending he is back there, under cloudy skies. 

But he would rather give up blue skies forever, than give up Inaho’s eyes. 

The reddish brown color does not garner attention like these do. They blend in with his face and hair.

But they’re beautiful. And Slaine suddenly wants to see red eyes looking at him instead of blue ones. 

Slaine wants to say something more. He wants to be drawn closer by Inaho’s hand on the small of his back. He wants to move with the music forever, no matter how many times his foot gets stepped on.

But he can feel eyes beginning to turn towards them. They’ve been dancing too long, too familiarly. 

Slaine steps away, and bows slightly to Inaho. Inaho looks him in the eyes, and after a second, returns the bow. They disappear their separate ways into the crowd. 

-

Inaho is standing off to the side, hoping to hear some important information. But he has long realized that parties are not where that kind of talk happens. At least not this party, with the princess present. 

Lemrina, still disguised at Seylum, rolls up to him. 

“Hello,” he greets, as usual. 

“Dance with me,” she says, and holds out her hands for him to help her up.

Inaho has many reasons why this is a bad idea. Mostly because he can’t dance, and Lemrina can barely walk. 

But she has a determined scowl on her face, so Inaho grabs her hands and helps her up. 

The dance is a lot more formal than his and Slaine’s earlier dance. He has to take the role of the man this time. He lightly rests his hand on her waist, and she puts hers on his shoulder. Their other hands connect together. 

To Inaho’s surprise, they aren’t doing horribly. Maybe it’s because they are further apart. Maybe because they are moving slower, not moving as much. Maybe because Lemrina takes charge and leads much more forcefully than Slaine, giving Inaho little room for error. 

She smirks. “Didn’t think the crippled girl could dance?”

“No,” Inaho replies truthfully, as she jerks him back into step. 

“Even though I couldn’t walk, I still wanted to learn to dance. I wanted to be like a normal girl.” She laughs bitterly. “Count Saazbaum indulged me, though he probably thought me foolish.”

“You could never walk,” Inaho says, answering one of the curiosities he had about her. 

She shakes her head. “No. I guess it was lucky I was born on Vers, and not Earth. At least here, I can move in low gravity.” She laughs again. “It’s ironic, isn’t it? The one place I want go to, is the one place I will be even more crippled. Wherever I go, I’m either imprisoned with metal walls and people using me, or by my own legs.”  
Inaho has his eye running through some possible causes for her inability to walk. 

He looks down and sees her scowling. A look that doesn’t belong on Seylum’s face. 

“It’s nice to dance with someone who doesn’t even pretend to listen to me,” she says sarcastically. But then her tone becomes more serious. “At least you don’t pretend to care when you don’t. You’re probably the only real person in here.”

Inaho glances over to Slaine. 

Lemrina follows his gaze. “He’s probably the fakest person here,” she says. “He hates absolutely everyone. He would see them all dead. And there he is, smiling and shaking hands like their best friends.”

Inaho has to admit, this is a completely different side to war that he knew existed, but had never seen. 

“These people might be bad, but they’re still people,” Lemrina says. “Don’t get me wrong,” she adds quickly. “I don’t care if they live or die. But they are not to blame for this system. The blame falls on the royal family, for implementing the system. The royal family is who made it so that people are only valued for their rank and their use. So that that powerful have all, and the rest get nothing. Some, like Count Saazbaum, knew it.”

She gestures over to two men dancing together. “That man, Count Marylcian, the blonde one, is the one who challenged Slaine to the duel.”

“Ah.”

“They’re in love.”

Inaho blinks. “What?”

“Him and Count Barouhcruz. The one he’s dancing with.”

Inaho looks at them again. They are dancing formally with each other. The older man’s face looks stern, and the blonde’s face has a twist to it. There is nothing to suggest that they are in love simply because they are dancing together. 

“There is nothing to suggest that they are in love simply because they are dancing together,” he tells Lemrina. 

She looks at him like he’s an idiot. “You’re an idiot,” she tells him. 

Inaho says nothing. 

She rolls her eyes. “It’s not because they’re dancing together,” she says sharply. “It’s the way they act. You should know, anyone who spends 2 seconds around you and Slaine can see you’re in love. Despite your appearance.”

Inaho ignores the jab and looks at the men again. The blonde one, Count Marylcian, is saying something in a low voice, his face smirking mischievously. Count Barouhcruz’s lips tilt upwards in a small smile. The lines on his face soften. 

Count Marylcian grabs Count Barouhcruz’s hands and pulls him into an elaborate dance. The whole room stops to watch as they waltz and spin across the floor, eyes never leaving the other’s face. It is much more advanced than anything Inaho has ever seen before. The two men are obviously very skilled. 

They move with the music, making it seem like the noise exists solely as a backdrop for their performance. These men has plenty of the rhythm that Slaine claimed Inaho had none of. 

As there performance ends, the room claps politely. Count Barouhcruz is breathing heavily, but the smile is still present on his lips, looking at Count Marylcian.   
Count Marylcian’s forehead gleams with the faintest hint of sweat. He turns to face Slaine, who had also stopped what he was doing to watch their dance. He bows slightly, but turns his face up and gives Slaine a smug, taunting smile. 

Inaho doesn’t know if any of that confirmed love. He turns back to Lemrina, whose eyes are still looking out past the dance floor. 

“I used to dream that someday someone would dance with me like that,” she says wistfully. Inaho wonders if she invented this whole romance between the men to live the life she can’t. 

She turns back to Inaho. “You probably can’t tell. You don’t understand these things.”

Inaho is slightly offended. He loves Slaine. Why wouldn’t he understand?

“But they’re always together,” she continues. “You never see one without the other. They fight together, they plot together, they are together.”

“What does it matter if they are in love?” Inaho asks. 

“It doesn’t,” she says without hesitation. “They oppose Slaine. They support the Royal Family. But it just proves that everyone is still a person, even if they don’t agree with you. I’m sure they think that what they’re doing is right. We’re willing to destroy their happiness to ensure our own. And they the same.”

Inaho looks at the two men again. Now the blonde one is playing with his curls and laughing. Count Barouhcruz chuckles along with him. 

“They believe in martian supremacy because it’s been engraved into them since they were born,” she says. “It’s not really their fault that they’ve been fed the lies that everyone else believes. They might not be good people. But I don’t think they’re bad people either. They think their eliminating a malevolent outsider who is trying to destroy everything they know. And they’re not wrong.”

She sighs as Count Barouhcruz glances in her and Inaho’s direction. “Watch, we’re about to see something interesting.”

Count Barouhcruz makes his way over to them, and bows. “You highness,” he says respectfully. “May I have a word with you and Slaine Troyard?”

Lemrina’s face immediately looses all hardness and her voice is the pure sweetness of Princess Asseylum. “Of course, Count Barouhcruz.”

They make their way over to where Slaine is standing, already watching them, aware of their arrival. Either Slaine doesn’t miss much, or he always had one eye on Inaho. Maybe both. 

Lemrina discreetly signals Inaho to follow. 

“Count Troyard,” Count Barouhcruz begins in a low voice. “I beg of you, reconsider this duel. It needn’t happen. Your place at Moon Base is respected and will be honored.”

Slaine looks at him with cold eyes. “Is Count Marylcian of the same thought?”

Count Barouhcruz flushes lightly and glances back at the other man. “He- he can be persuaded. Just call off the duel. We don’t need this purposeless danger,” he turns to Lemrina. “Your Highness. Now is not the time we should be fighting amongst ourselves,” he pleads.

“I am only a spectator in this event,” Lemrina says. “I leave the decision in Slaine Troyard’s hands.”

Count Barouhcruz turns his eyes back to Slaine, waiting for an answer. 

“I have been challenged,” Slaine says stiffly. “I cannot, and will not, back out or call it off. This must determine who is more capable. Who is stronger. May honor be bestowed upon the victor,” Slaine finishes and turns away. 

Count Barouhcruz looks after him for a minute, a sneer beginning to appear on his face. He marches off and disappears into the crowd. 

Lemrina faces Inaho once again. “That must have been hard for him, to beg a terran, someone he thinks is dirt.”

“Does Slaine know?”

“Does Slaine know what?”

Inaho looks past her. “That they are in love?”

She laughs. “It’s hard to miss. Even you figured it out, eventually. Of course he knows. And he will use it to his advantage.”

-

The rest of the party passes without incident. It ends with a gracious thanks from Princess Asseylum, and a promise of a better future on Earth, once they are victorious in war. 

Inaho’s findings were rather insignificant. Especially considering the only reason he was here was to rather information. 

But Inaho finds that he doesn’t really care. He doesn’t really care what happens, as long as Slaine lives. He doesn’t share Slaine and Lemrina’s dream of a unified nation, achieved through destruction and death and lies. But he understands why they are doing it. 

Inaho’s sole purpose is to protect Slaine, and make sure there is a world for him to live in. No matter what happens, Inaho doesn’t see a future where he and Slaine aren’t alive and happy on earth. If Earth wins, if Slaine wins, it doesn’t matter. 

Slaine enters the room shoulders sagging in exhaustion, all semblance of the cold count gone. 

They lock eyes, and don’t have to say a word, simply share soft smiles. 

And then suddenly Slaine's eyes darken and he scowls. "Have you been telling people that I dye my hair?"

"No," Inaho answers honestly. 

"Then why did at least 3 orbital knights come up to be and ask me what kind of product I am using?!"

"Why do you assume that the rumor came from me?"

Slaine's scowl deepens. "Because I heard several mentions of a weird, blue-eyed boy whispering all night."

"I never said you dye it."

"What did you say?!"

"That it is probably fake."

"Inaho!"

"I did not realize your appearance was so important to you."

Slaine groans. "Of course it is! It's all that's keeping me in power!"

"Do they not allow those who are not completely natural be orbital knights?"

"I invite you to a party, and all you do is spread rumors." Slaine says. "You're so frustrating." Not a lie, his eye detects. But also not angry.

Inaho firmly grabs one of Slaine’s hands. “Dance with me.”

Slaine groans. “What are you talking about? We just danced all night.”

It’s late, Slaine’s tired, Inaho’s tired, they just danced all night. 

“I want to dance with you,” Inaho insists. 

“There’s no room!” Slaine protests.

Inaho immediately pushes the desk towards the door. 

“Orange!” Slaine says as everything goes askew. But he looks at Inaho’s determined face and sighs in defeat. “Fine. But that’s probably a fire hazard,” Slaine mutters at the blocked door. 

Inaho considers that as Slaine grabs him and pulls him close. They move without music, around the still small room. Slaine smiles contentedly at Inaho. 

“Fires are a real danger in space…” Inaho says, eyes drifting off Slaine’s face and back to the desk. 

“Inaho!” Slaine says, face turning grumpy. 

“Fires can burn at a lower temperature and with less oxygen in space.”

“Shut up,” Slaine says, and purposefully steps on Inaho’s foot. 

Inaho opens his mouth to say something about Slaine’s offense, but Slaine bursts out laughing. 

“Hey.”

“Not nice when it happens to you, huh?” Slaine says, face still lighten up with laughter. 

Inaho tries to step on Slaine’s foot, but Slaine swiftly dodges. Inaho narrows his eyes. He tries again, but Slaine spins Inaho, moving his feet safely away. Inaho gives Slaine a measured look. He considers using his eye, but he knows Slaine hates it, and doesn’t want to taint this moment. He attempts to read Slaine’s moves on his own, but Slaine is too fast, even when his face is red from laughter. They are moving around the room in some kind of frantic battle-dance.   
Eventually, Inaho’s foot grazes Slaine’s, and Inaho hmphs in satisfaction. 

Slaine laughs. “That barely counts.”

Inaho smiles. “But it still counts. Even small actions can have large effects. If it was a real battle, you a small hit could still incapacitate you.”

The silence is grim. Inaho moves his attention back to Slaine and to their dance, now resumed normally. 

“Did you magically get better in the last two hours?” Slaine asks suspiciously after a minute. 

“No. I believe the lack of music, and lack of people are contributing to my improved rhythm.”

Slaine laughs. “Whatever you say, Orange.”

Inaho thinks back to their first dance, when he was just beginning to fall in love with Slaine. It was so much different than this once. Here, there is no fear, no uncertainty, no walls. 

Except here there is fear, and uncertainty, and walls. 

They are just a different kind.

“Can you take those things out,” Slaine mutters. 

Inaho had forgotten all about his contacts. He doesn’t know why Slaine wants them gone, since he seemed so captivated by them, but he obliges, tossing the contacts away. 

Their dance slows as their gazes become more and more intense. 

Inaho listens to the sound of Slaine’s breathing and he can’t rip his eyes from Slaine’s as they stop completely and stand in the center of the room, holding each other. 

Inaho never understood attraction, or love, before. When Yuki would gush over the men on the television, Inaho would note that the men did indeed have pleasing, well-balanced features. But it felt like just another offhanded fact. Nothing he felt anywhere besides the small part of his brain that cataloged it. When girls at school would squeal over love letters left in lockers, or write names surrounded by hearts in their notebooks, Inaho didn't understand. Words are practically meaningless. He could write anything on a piece of paper. It doesn't mean it's true. And now, more than ever, Inaho is aware of exactly how much people lie. The only words with value were those that provided knowledge or insight. Ones that were proven true. So why did those hastily scribbled words, hastily forgotten words hold so much meaning to the girls?

He understands now.

It’s the way Slaine’s hair brushes his cheeks. 

It’s the way his body presses against his. 

It’s the way he can command a room full of powerful nobles. 

It’s the way he blushes. 

It’s the way he says Inaho’s name. 

It’s the way his lips taste, it’s the way his eyes look, it’s the way he laughs. 

Slaine is the most wonderful thing Inaho has ever looked at. And he never wants to look away. 

He wants Slaine to be his future. 

And even if Slaine were a note filled with empty promises and sweet lies, Inaho's heart would still beat just as fast reading it. Even if he knew it was false, he would still hold onto that small probability that it was true. 

Because a chance to be loved by Slaine would be worth the much larger probability of his heart being destroyed.

Inaho can feel Slaine’s heartbeat against his own chest, their hearts pounding together. 

Inaho slowly presses his lips against Slaine’s, looking into his eyes the whole time. 

Slaine makes a noise, and clutches Inaho tighter.

Someone this feels more intimate than any of their more passionate kisses. Their lips barely touching, gazes locked, just the sound of their hearts and their breathing.   
It feels like their souls are intertwining. Twisting together, trying to get as close together as possible, trying to become one. 

Slaine’s eyes flutter shut. 

“I love you,” Inaho whispers. 

A tear slides down Slaine’s cheek. He smiles. “I love you, too.” 

Inaho rests his forehead against Slaine’s. He feels like one of the squealing school-girls. The silence is comfortable and happy. Slaine’s small smile never leaves.

“Do you like cats?” Inaho mumbles after a minute. 

“What?” Slaine asks tiredly, never opening his eyes. 

“Do you like ca-?”

“I heard you, Orange! I just don’t know why you’re asking me!”

“I wanted to know if we were going to get a cat. I will need to begin research if-“

Slaine laughs. “Why would we be getting a cat?”

“When the war is over.” 

Slaine turns somber. “You’re already planning for the war’s end.”

“Of course. It would be irresponsible not to.”

Slaine tries to jerk away, but Inaho holds him tight. 

“You can’t just plan for a future we might not have!”

Inaho puts a hand over Slaine’s rapidly increasing heartbeat. “We will have a future. We can get a house somewhere. The city would be good because there would be easy access to amenities, and many activities such as movies. And you could go to school if you wanted. I would finish my education if you went back, though I don’t think it’s really necessary.”

Inaho’s hand begins moving on Slaine’s chest in a thoughtful manner. “But somewhere more secluded could be good as well. It would afford more privacy, and there would be a lot of nature for you to enjoy. We wouldn’t have to worry about waking the neighbors up with all your yelling.”

Slaine’s breathing had calmed, and his eyes grew distant and Inaho talked. But now he snapped out of it. “I don’t yell!”

“I could cook eggs for breakfast every morning,” Inaho says thoughtfully. “It would be easier with more time and a better supply. I could experiment with all the different ways-“

Slaine makes a horrified face. “I don’t want eggs every day! No one in their right mind would!”

Inaho ignores Slaine’s mistakenness. “Somewhere cold would be nice.”

“You say that because you wear a suit and tie every day!”

“The cat could sleep in our bed, though he would have to leave when we-“

“Inaho!” Slaine blushes faintly. “I didn’t even say I wanted a cat!”

Inaho smiles. “Analyzing your personality, and that of the typical cat owner resulted-“

Slaine laughs and pushes lightly at Inaho. “I think you’re the one who wants the cat.”

Inaho’s face turns serious. “I have never owned a cat before. Why would I want one?”

Slaine’s smile turns evil. “Fine. I’ll say that I’m the one who wants a cat if you don’t cook eggs every day.”

Inaho considers that. “I suppose there are other meals that may be acceptable substitutes.”

Slaine buries his face in Inaho’s shoulder and laughs. “And what are we naming the cat?”

“Obviously that would depend on what it looks like,” Inaho says. 

“Oh I forgot I’m talking to the naming master!” Slaine says. “The one who named me Bat after the shape of the sky carrier I piloted once! You’ll probably call it Cat!”

“Hey,” Inaho says, slightly offended. “You called me Orange after the color of my kataphrakt.”

“But at least that’s your actual kataphrakt that you actually use all the time!”

Inaho pouts. Slaine looks up, eyes gleaming. He kisses Inaho’s next. “We could travel,” he mutters. 

“Yes,” Inaho says immediately. “I haven’t seen much outside of my home town.”

Slaine laughs as he continues to kiss Inaho’s neck. “You’ve gone to space! You’re in space!”

“There aren’t museums or research centers in space,” Inaho grumbles. 

“I’m sorry. Would you like me to build you one?” Slaine asks, nipping Inaho’s skin. 

“No,” Inaho says hoarsely, drawing Slaine’s face up to connect their lips. 

Slaine pulls away and happily nuzzles his cheek against Inaho’s. Inaho would be content to take Slaine and run away now, start building this future. It’s funny how things can change. Two years ago, he was the one who told Slaine they could never run away. And now he was willing and Slaine wasn’t. 

But Inaho can wait. They can wait until the war is over. They will survive, and they can begin the rest of their lives. 

“Maybe Whiskers…”

“Orange!”

“I wonder what kind of eggs cats like…”

“You have any idea of how to take care of a cat!”

Inaho smiles. “We can figure it out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the huge delay. I've been so busy and haven't had time to write. I decided to post what I have, and hopefully start writing again soon!
> 
> I don't know if anyone is still reading, it's been so long. But I really want to see this get a conclusion, so hopefully I can find time, and write the rest.


	31. Chapter 31

Count Barouhcruz never wanted it to go this far. Not if it endangered Victor’s life. 

For all this talk about Slaine Troyard, his distrust of the boy, his scorn that a terran rose to power, Count Barouhcruz has some grudging respect for him. And that respect comes because Slaine Troyard is dangerous. 

Which makes Barouhcruz wish he had spoken much less about Slaine Troyard to Victor.

Victor Marylcian is very intelligent, but once he gets his mind set on an idea, it’s impossible to get him to let go. Even Barouhcruz can’t manage it.   
Victor had quickly latched on to Barouhcruz’s constant talking about how Slaine Troyard was not to be trusted, did not deserve his position, how Count Saazbuam was a fool. 

In the beginning, it wasn’t a problem. They would sneer when they saw Slaine, make some comments, let it drop afterwards.   
But Victor started getting more and more obsessed. He started acting irrationally. His whole stunt with the sword is what prompted Count Saazbuam to name Slaine Troyard his son in the first place. 

And that only fueled Victor’s anger. 

Count Barouhcruz also found the circumstances around Count Saazbuam’s death suspicious, but Victor took it to a new level. He began planning, plotting, spreading dangerous rumors. 

Usually, Barouhcruz managed to be the voice of reason behind Victor. 

But the obsession spread too fast, like an infection in Victor’s mind. And even Barouhcruz couldn’t stop him from escalating things too much.   
It was one of the things Count Barouhcruz loved about him; his one-track mind. Once he decided that he wanted something, he would pursue it relentlessly. 

He doesn’t know what made Marylcian decide that he wanted Barouhcruz in the first place. 

Maybe because he seemed to be immune to Victor’s charm that had won over all the other Orbital Knights. (He wasn’t immune, he just knew better than to wear his heart on his sleeve).

Victor’s pursuit began as teasing flirting. Which Barouhcruz promptly ignored. He had no desire to play games with Victor. To be thrown away as soon as he was caught. 

Even if he was already in love with Victor’s clever words and mocking laughter. Even if he had fallen in love with Victor over their years spent together as Orbital Knights.

The conference calls with Victor’s comments that had everyone else laughing.

“I hope you slept well last night, Count Treford,” he said with a smile, knowing perfectly well that Count Treford’s landing castle had been subject to a small meteor bombardment last night. 

The dinners with Victor’s serious face and deep conversation. His brow would furrow in concentration or anger, as he talked lowly with the person next to him. Though, he never seemed to be able to keep quiet for long. He would make some sort of outburst, then quickly smooth it over.

“That is not how things are done!” He pounded his fist against the table. Everyone was quiet as they looked between him and Countess Raffia. He smiled brightly. “How dare you suggest we use three ice cubes instead of four!” he said, knowing everyone knew that isn’t what they were discussing. It didn’t matter, everyone chuckled and forgot about it. 

None of it was forgotten by Count Barouhcruz. 

Count Barouhcruz wasn’t one for denial. He accepted the fact that he had fallen in love with quiet resignation. 

And Count Barouhcruz endured for two years, before Count Marylcian turned his sights to him. 

Count Marylcian hadn’t always been an Orbital Knight. He was promoted after a suspicious string of deaths of previous knights. Almost five years ago, now. 

He resisted so hard, so well. 

“You’re looking as happy as ever, Charles,” Victor would say to Barouhcruz’s stern face. 

“Indeed, I am. I hope you are well as well, Count Marylcian,” Barouhcruz would reply politely, detachedly. 

“Would you care to train with me? I can show you some new moves,” he asks suggestively. 

“I’m afraid not. I have important matters to attend to. I’m sure I would be no match for you, anyway.”

“I heard rumors that the strange disease killing off Knights is spread through bodily fluids. We should test the hypothesis.”

“Rumors are just that, rumors. Besides, it would be imprudent to possibly contribute to the spread of the disease.”

Barouhcruz knew Victor would tire of the game sooner or later, especially when he was the only player. 

But at each rejection, as Barouhcruz’s heart thudded more painfully, the playful laughter would vanish from Victor’s eyes, and he would scowl and march off.   
He became increasingly persistent with his attempts. Until one day, when he was paying another ‘regalatory’ visit to Barouhcruz’s landing castle, Victor just kissed him.

And Barouhcruz didn’t have it in him to resist. 

Victor pulled away, twirling his hair around his finger with a smirk. “I knew you wanted it, too.”

And Barouhcruz had absolutely no will power left. 

That was two years ago, now. 

Count Barouhcruz is still unsure whether he did the right thing. Is Victor with him because he hasn’t found an amusing new toy? 

Sometimes Barouhcruz almost wishes for a soft ‘I love you,’ from his lover. He almost wants sweet kisses and tender words. 

Maybe then he would know for sure. Maybe then he wouldn’t live in this constant state of worry that Victor will decide to leave him the next day. 

But Victor is none of those things, and their relationship is none of those things. If that’s what Barouhcruz really wanted, he wouldn’t have fallen in love with Victor in the first place. 

And he can handle the doubt and fear, if it’s the price he has to pay to have Victor. 

Victor is his best friend, his worst enemy, his lover, his everything. 

Barouhcruz never married. He never had any desire to. He had his work and his title, which is what really mattered in the world, he thought. He didn’t need anyone, and no one needed him. And he was happy with it being like that. 

But then Victor came, and turned that happiness upside down. 

He gave his life to Victor long ago, and he would have to bear the consequences of that action. 

And it seems that Slaine Troyard is just as stubborn and dedicated to ideals as Victor is. Count Barouhcruz had swallowed his distaste for the terran, and sacrificed his pride, to ask for Slaine Troyard to call off the duel. 

And the terran didn’t even consider it. 

Count Barouhcruz never paid attention to Slaine Troyard in the years he was here under Count Cruhteo. He was insignificant, dirt. But when he visited Cruhteo, Troyard was always respectful, meek, eyes downcast. The way it should be. 

Something happened. Something must have changed, for that boy to change into this count. 

Slaine Troyard may be a terran, but he is taking charge, and getting results. He is pushing Vers towards the future on Earth that they all desire. 

Victor does not need to fight this duel. They can curse Slaine Troyard from afar, as they conquer earth. 

But Victor is rash and impulsive and thinks he is doing what is right. And even Barouhcruz’s rational words can’t pull him back. Not from this disease called Slaine Troyard, which Barouhcruz himself implanted in Victor’s head. 

“Be careful,” Baourhcruz tells Marylcian, as he prepares to enter his Herschel. 

Maryclian scoffs. “We cannot let this terran dog do as he pleases any longer.”

“Yes,” Barouhcruz agrees, because he can’t do anything else at this point. 

Marylcian laughs viciously. “He will learn his place soon enough. When I return, I will be in power. We will control the Moon Base!” 

Barouhcruz sighs and kisses Marylcian on the forehead. 

“Hey,” Maryclian says, pushing Barouhcruz away. “Don’t go getting all sentimental,” he scowls and wipes his forehead, and makes sure his hair is still fine. “It doesn’t suit you.”

-

“Be careful,” Inaho says resting his forehead against Slaine’s. 

Different emotions swirl in Slaine’s stomach: worry, excitement, determination, anger, love. 

“I’ll come back to you,” Slaine whispers. 

“You can’t promise that,” Inaho says a little angrily. 

“You can’t just call me a liar,” Slaine says, pushing Inaho teasingly. 

Inaho doesn’t rise to the bait. “There are many reasons why it would be beneficial not to go through with this duel. For one thing-“

Slaine sighs dramatically. “It would be stupid not to, when I have all the advantages.”

“What advantages?”

Slaine grins. “The terran soldier that can destroy martian kataphrakts with a single hit.”

Inaho just gives Slaine a look. Slaine sighs again and takes Inaho’s hand. He rubs his thumb over Inaho’s, to sooth himself as much as Inaho. Slaine is trying to keep this lighthearted, and fine. But Inaho is making it very difficult. 

“If you went and had a discussion with the Orbital knight, I’m sure it would be beneficial. This is your life, Bat.”

“I’ve fought for my lives many times before,” Slaine says, trying to keep his smile. 

There’s something else going on in Inaho’s mind, Slaine can tell. He is suddenly much more persistent about Slaine not fighting this battle. But he must not have a good reason, or at least a logical one, or else Slaine wouldn’t hear the end of it. Instead, he is getting half-formed ideas. 

It won’t be an easy battle, they both know that. 

Inaho’s the one who has defeated Orbital Knights before. (Well, Slaine supposes that he did help that time they first met).

But it was Inaho who devised the plan. 

He has Inaho here with him now, and for that reason, he can’t lose. 

“I have a lot more to fight for, Orange,” Slaine says. He grabs the side of Inaho’s neck and pulls him into a rough kiss. “I’m fighting for peace, and hope, and-“ he pushes his lips against Inaho’s again. “-love.”

Inaho forces a small smile, and peppers small kisses on Slaine’s face. 

But something dark still swirls behind his real eye. “What is this?” he asks, gesturing to the holograms still floating around the room. Slaine had been looking at them before Inaho arrived. Different flowers line the whole room. 

Slaine reddens. “I was just studying Earth some more.”

Inaho steps closer to one of the holograms, studying it. Slaine never expected Inaho to be interested in flowers. 

“We don’t have technology like this on Earth,” Inaho says, touching the image and watching it distort. He turns to Slaine. “Does it use aldnoah to power it?”

Slaine shrugs, smiling. He should have realized Inaho was more interested in the technology behind the images. But he really has no idea how it works. “Mars has technology, aldnoah, that Earth needs. And earth has resources and the environment that Vers needs,” Slaine says softly. “And neither wants to share. The only way for the world to work, is if we come together.”

Inaho nods distractedly, looking at the tablet Slaine used to pull up the pictures. Slaine senses danger, if Inaho gets his hands on another tablet. He might never Inaho’s undivided attention again. “You know flowers have different meanings,” Slaine says. 

Inaho gives him a look. 

“It’s true!” Slaine insists. He pulls up an image of a white daisy. “This means innocence,” he overlays it with a daffodil. “This means chivalry.” He walks across the room, to his favorite section. He looks at the large, red rose. “This means love,” he says, slight blush on his face. “And these,” he points to a brilliant blue rose, “means miracles.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Inaho says. “They don’t really mean that. Someone just decided to say that it does.”

Slaine is kind of hurt, even though he knows that’s just how Inaho is. “That doesn’t make the meaning any less,” Slaine says quietly. 

“There is no meaning. Someone randomly attached a word to a flower. There is nothing behind it. Miracles don’t exist, either.”

Slaine knows Inaho doesn’t mean to hurt him, but that doesn’t make his anger any less. He glares at Inaho. “You can’t prove that miracles don’t exist.”

“You can’t prove that they do.”

“People recovering from deadly illnesses! People surviving what should have killed them! Earth being bountiful, supporting life! Meeting you!” Slaine says, tears welling in his eyes. 

“That is all random chance,” Inaho says. “It doesn’t prove miracles exist.” Inaho is oblivious to Slaine. “Besides, the internet is hardly a reliable source. Is that where you learned about the sky being blue due to diffraction? Flowers can’t have real meaning.”

Slaine colors at the mention of his past mistake. He angrily spins around and pulls up a peony. “This means healing,” he pulls up Yarrow. “This means good health.” He turns back to Inaho. “Both of these flowers are used extensively in medicine. You can’t tell me their meaning is random!”

Inaho looks taken aback at Slaine’s outburst. Slaine sighs. He shouldn’t take these things so seriously. It’s not like he is invested in flowers and their meaning or anything. He just really misses Earth, and he wants to go back, and have it in all its beauty, like the flowers in the pictures. 

And Inaho really knows how to undercut Slaine’s excitement, make him feel stupid, foolish. 

“I’m sorry,” Inaho says. He must have realized that he had offended Slaine in some way. But Slaine doubts he realizes exactly what it was that he did, or why Slaine was upset. 

Slaine hugs Inaho, and puts his forehead on Inaho’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, too.”

“We can have a garden,” Inaho says. “With-” He examines a picture. “-With peonies.”

This is why he loves Inaho. Even though Inaho doesn’t understand Slaine’s love of flowers, or their meanings, he tries to make Slaine happy. 

Slaine laughs. “I think it’s too cold for us to grow peonies. We would have to live somewhere warmer, with lots of sun.”

“Then we will.”

Slaine laughs again. “I think you overestimate my desire for peonies, Orange.”

“I think you underestimate my desire for our future, Bat.”

They stand there, surrounded by holographic technology that only Vers possesses, and flowers that only Earth possesses, until it is time. 

-

Slaine closes his eyes as he presses his palm to the aldnoah drive, activating the Tharsis. He thinks of Princess Asseylum, floating soundlessly in her tank. He thinks of Lemrina, angry and bitter and wronged. He thinks of Count Saazbuam, consumed by revenge. He thinks of Harklight, who considers himself lucky to be a servant, to be mistreated. He thinks of Earth, with its sun and air and grass and flowers. He thinks of Inaho.

He takes a deep breath and opens his eyes. 

Count Marylcian’s Herschel launches in front of him. 

Harklight opens a video communication with him. “Good hunting, Milord. Remember to-” Slaine hears a scuffle, a grunt, and the camera twists to show a very serious Inaho. “Be careful, Bat.” The camera turns back to Harklight, looking slightly annoyed at his camera being commandeered. “As I was saying, Milord-” There’s another noise, and Lemrina’s face appears on Slaine’s screen. “Yes, good luck, Slaine.” She says with a smirk, more directed in Harklight’s direction than Slaine’s. When Harklight gets the camera back, he looks so completely done.

Slaine resists the urge to laugh as he launches the Tharsis. He feels inappropriately lighthearted at the thought of those three back at Moon Base bickering, supporting him. 

“Say, Inaho, don’t you think we should move the computer to the other room with the large holoscreen, so you can better see the duel?” Slaine hears Lemrina say sneakily. 

“Yes,” Inaho agrees. “That would be a good idea,” Slaine can hear the smile in his voice.

Harklight’s face looks panicked on the screen. “Really, there is no need for that!” he says desperately. “That room has communication capabilities already! There is no need for my device to be moved, it is positioned properly here, I have it so-“

There’s a scuffle, and laughter. Slaine shuts off the video feed, no matter how much he would enjoy watching Inaho and Lemrina tease Harklight, and destroy all his organization. 

Lemrina and Harklight will soon have to join Count Barouhcruz in the main viewing room, and Inaho will relocate to a back room. Inaho will contact him if he needs to.

“The sight of a lowborn putting on airs is offensive to me,” Count Marylcian says, as soon as Slaine enters the dark night. “On the honor of the Vers Orbital Knights, I will exact punishment.”

Slaine faces the other kataphrakt. “Usurping an official post out of self-interest, without cause disturbs both order and public peace. As the man in charge of Her Highness’s safety, I will punish you.”

Slaine hears Count Saazbuam through the universal comm. “This is a duel between Count Marylcian, and Count Troyard,” he says steadily. He had volunteered to be the officiator. Slaine hadn’t objected, so it was accepted. “Begin.”

Slaine immediately takes off, pushing the Tharsis as hard as it can go, straight up the side of Moon Base. He knows that not only are all the Orbital Knights watching, but likely other nobles, and the servants on Moon Base. He needs to make this a good show as much as he needs to win. 

Marylcian shoots up behind him, and they hover over Moon Base, taking testing jabs at each other. They fire a few shots, carefully dodge. 

Slaine shoots off further into empty space, leaving Moon Base behind. Marylcian follows. “You’re a slippery devil, just as the rumor’s say,” Maryclain says gleefully, enjoying the chase. “But can you escape from my Herschel’s attacks?”

Herschel’s back contracts, and spikes pop out of it, like a porcupine, which roams earth forests. The spikes are much less harmless than a porcupine’s, though, and are really large swords. They lift into the air and glow an aldnoah purple as they race towards Slaine. 

Slaine quickly flies in the opposite direction. There are more than fifty flying towards him, and he can’t take them all at once. 

He flies downwards towards the surface of a large asteroid, and pulls up at the last moment, causing ten or so swords to crash fatally into the hard ground. Slaine smiles slightly, because that move was similar to the one he pulled when he first met Inaho. Though, with a lot more control here. 

The smile quickly leaves as the thirty or so swords still after him begin firing. Slaine frantically reads the Tharsis’s predictions, and dodges. But there are too many bullets, and as he escapes one prediction, he moves right into another. 

“Even with your predictions, not even you can cope with this many,” Count Marylcian says happily. “It’s impossible!”

It’s true. Count Maryclain came to this duel knowing the Tharsis’s weakness, and knowing that his kataphrakt exploited it perfectly. Slaine hadn’t known the Herschel had this many swords attached to it.

Inaho’s concerned face appears on a screen to Slaine’s right hand side. “Slaine,” he says. “I believe that those weapons are not automatic. They do not move in a way consistent with tracking devices. Artificial intelligence devices rely on algorithms and are much less fluid-“

Slaine grunts as a shot lands on the Tharsis, rattling him. “Just tell me!”

“Count Marylcian is controlling them himself.”

Slaine immediately stops his retreat and turns, raising his gun. But instead of shooting the oncoming swords, he shoots the ground of the meteor. Dust and rock flies into the air. He flies, shooting the ground as he goes, creating a huge cloud of dust that covers him, the swords continue to shoot, but with much less accuracy. 

They don’t have automatic trackers. They rely on Count Marylcian’s vision, just as Inaho thought. Despite the fact that most kataphrakt’s methods are well known, Orbital Knights jealously guard as many of their secrets as they can. 

Count Saazbuam changing the gap in his barrier. Count Marylcian not divulging how the swords work, or how many he can control.

“You always have to be right, don’t you, Orange,” he gasps out to Inaho as he continues shooting. 

Inaho smiles lightly. “You have pointed out several occasions when I am wrong, Bat.”

Slaine laughs. “Well, you can’t feed a cat eggs, no matter what nutritional value they provide!” then he grunts, as a shot hits him. 

Inaho’s smile disappears. “Don’t let him surround you,” and the screen disconnects. 

Slaine hears Marylcian’s angry yell, but Slaine’s dust cloud fails him as he flies over a large canyon with no ground to shoot. Less swords emerge from the cloud, and follow Slaine down the canyon wall. 

Marylcian isn’t far behind, adding shots of his own to those of the swords left.

Slaine laments the loss of his coverage, but he couldn’t have won by hiding anyway. And the real strategy should be to destroy as many swords as possible, do the most damage to Marylcian, and receive the least amount of damage possible.

When put that way, it seemed pretty impossible.

Slaine turns and tries to fire upwards towards Marylcian, but he can’t run the predictions of dodging all these shots and firing accurately at the same time. He misses by a mile. 

Marylcian laughs. “Futile, futile, futile!”

Slaine does the only thing he can, and turns and flies deeper into the canyon. But now shots are starting to land more and more frequently on the Tharsis. It shakes and smokes. Slaine swipes away all the warning alerts that pop up. 

He grits his teeth. ‘Futile’, ‘impossible’, the words snake their way into Slaine’s head, and he wonders if it’s true. 

A shot hits something important, and an explosion jerks Slaine forward. More warning alerts. More swiping away. 

Slaine urges the Tharsis down faster, even though it has already reached its limit. 

He turns to shoot, but one of his shields is immediately shot off his arm, unbalancing him. He tries to avoid oncoming shots, but he is trapped between these canyon walls, and Marylcian is firing downwards, having all the advantage.

“Slaine,” Inaho says urgently on the video feed. Slaine closes it immediately. 

Impossible.

Futile.

Hopeless. 

The Tharsis rattles unsteadily with all the damage done to it. 

Is it impossible for him to try and change the world? Was it futile for him to wish for his own happiness?

Is it hopeless that Princess Asseylum will ever wake? Slaine wants her to see his new world, with that bright smile on her face that led him through dark times. Is it hopeless to want a future with Inaho? The house in the woods, waking up to Inaho every day, exploring earth together, making breakfast, even the cat…

Impossible.

“You were right, miracles don’t exist!” he yells angrily, tears sliding down his cheeks, as Count Marylcian closes in on him. He doesn’t know if Inaho can hear him, if Inaho is already trying to do something stupid to save him. 

Slaine bursts from the canyon into empty space, and an explosion whooshes down the canyon walls and explodes after him.

“Is running all you can do?” Count Marylcian asks venomously.

Slaine is out in the open now, but the swords have raced to come at him from all sides. He dodges and uses small debris as a shield. But it’s a game of cat and mouse, and he can’t hide forever. 

He keeps running. But he takes a sharp turn downwards and full force thrusts into an abandoned tunnel on the remains of the moon. The swords follow him in. 

Count Marylcian laughs, also following him. “There’s nowhere left to run!”

“You’re the one who has nowhere to run,” Slaine replies coldly. 

He stops and fires upwards at the swords, which have all converged into a single line towards Slaine. He takes them all out at once. 

Miracles might not exist. He can’t depend on a miracle to change the world, or to wake Asseylum, or to build his future with Inaho. He can only depend on himself, and what he can do. And he will do whatever it takes.

“The Herschel’s greatest weapon,” Slaine says. “Is simultaneous attacks from all directions. But here, your attack is confined to just one.

Slaine hears Count Marylcian’s noises of dismay as he flies backwards out the tunnel, avoiding the explosions from his destroyed weapons. 

Once the explosion bursts out of the tunnel, Slaine follows suit. He pursues Marylcian. “Material loading tunnels used during the Moon Base’s construction. I have been mapping them out.”

Herschel turns and fires at Slaine. “I won’t be beat by the likes of you!”

But the single shots are no match for Slaine’s predictions. 

“Who do you think you are, terran?!”

Slaine’s eyes narrow. He is not going to be abused by a man who he is superior to. He lunges forward and grabs the Herschel, holding the sword to its head. 

Slaine hears Marylcian shout “Never!” into his comm. Someone from Moon Base must be talking to him. Marylcian makes to move, but the back of the Herschel’s head explodes, shooting fragments off into space, and against the already damaged Tharsis. 

The explosion is quickly snuffed out by the lack of Oxygen in space, and it almost looks like it was sucked back in on itself. 

The Herschel is no more. 

-

At the beginning of the duel, Count Barouhcruz became increasingly relaxed. The tension dropped from his shoulders, and his breathing became easier. 

As Marylcian started to overwhelm Slaine Troyard, Barouhcruz had even smirked to himself. He was silly for worrying that a terran boy could win over an experienced martian soldier. 

He watched the large screens with amazement as what Victor could do, how well Victor fought. 

Princess Asseylum and Slaine Troyard’s servent were stationed in the room with him, of course. He was meant to be officiating. This would determine the outcome of Moon Base, and Princess Asseylum’s, future. 

He and Victor could control Moon Base together.

The terran had some good moves, Barouhcruz would give him that. Using the dust to obscure Marylcian’s vision was intelligent. 

But it wasn’t enough. 

By then Barouhcruz was certain of their victory. It was only a matter of him before Marylcian stopped playing with Slaine and finally destroyed him.

When Slaine Troyard ducked into a tunnel, and the camera’s used to focus on the kataphrakt and broadcast the duel went dark. 

He was sure only Marylcian would emerge. 

But when Victor did come out of the tunnel, he was followed by a huge explosion, and Slaine Troyard, who now appeared to be on the offensive. 

By the time it was obvious that the tables had turned, Barouhcruz barely had time to connect to Victor’s kataphrakt. 

“Victor! Yield to him!” Barouhcruz yelled, as Slaine Troyard had a sword to the Herschel’s head. He didn’t care what Princess Asseylum and the servant thought of his conversation. “Yield to him and come back.” Barouhcruz’s words were a flurry of emotion, he only had a few seconds to try to make Victor see reason. “We don’t need Moon Base. Our enemy is earth. We can conquer earth together. I love you,” he says frantically. “If you love me, then yield and come back!”

“Never!”

The screens turn orange as flames burst from Herschel’s head. Barouhcruz’s mouth opens in silent horror. 

He never wanted this. Never this. His mind feels slow and in shock. He presses a hand to the glass of the window. “Victor,” he whispers. 

He sees Princess Asseylum move out of the corner of his eye. And he remembers that he has an audience. 

The servant makes a pleased noise. “In accordance with the law, all of Count Marylcian’s assets are to be transferred to Count Slaine Saazbuam Troyard. Do you object?”

Barouhcruz chokes back his tears and anger. This man is smiling and celebrating at Barouhcruz’s heartbreak. 

He clenches his first tight at his side, to keep himself from doing anything idiotic. “As official witness, I, Barouhcruz, certify the outcome.” He lets all thoughts drop from his mind, and turns the broadcasting cameras to him. “Slaine Troyard is declared winner.”

-

Slaine enters the conference room on Moon Base. The large screens that must have been displaying his duel are now quiet and black. 

Count Barouhcruz is talking quietly to Princess Asseylum. Harklight stands respectfully behind them, though his face lights up when he sees Slaine. “Milord!”

The others turn to look at him. Slaine observes the tenseness in Count Barouhcruz. “It was an honorable duel,” Count Barouhcruz says stiffy. 

Slaine nods his agreement. “Count Marylcian is in critical condition, and has been put in cryogenic sleep so that we may try to save him,” Slaine bows his head slightly. “I did not anticipate the explosion, and I regret that he had to be injured.”

“Injured...He’s alive…?” Count Barouhcruz whispers. He sounds scared. Scared to believe it. Harklight and Lemrina stare at him.

“Yes,” Slaine says solemnly. “He will receive the best treatment, here at Moon Base.”

Count Barouhcruz bows. “Thank you…Count Troyard.”

Slaine turns away, letting a small smile flicker across his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry I never update! I still have some more chapters to add, and will hopefully get back into the flow of writing! Thanks to everyone who is still reading, and hopefully I don't disappoint :)


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